‘Big name’ Kayla Harrison shouldn’t get to ‘skip the line’ for title shot with a UFC 300 win: ‘I do not find it fair’

Kayla Harrison might have a brief climb to an Final Preventing Championship (UFC) title combat ought to issues go her manner at UFC 300 subsequent month (Sat., April 13, 2024).

UFC’s girls’s Bantamweight division has gone via a dramatic face-lift since its longtime ruler and all-time nice, Amanda Nunes, retired in June 2023. 10-plus 12 months UFC veteran, Raquel Pennington, now holds the division’s title and finds herself focused by the admittedly skinny forged of challengers.

Former two-time Skilled Fighters League (PFL) Light-weight champion, Harrison, will quickly make her promotional debut in opposition to Pennington’s previous successor, Holly Holm, on the aforementioned tremendous present. Because of Harrison’s profession so far as a 16-1 former champion and Bantamweight’s lack of viable contenders, a win can land her a bout with “Rocky” sooner fairly than later.

“Simply from having to grind from the underside up, by no means being handed something, there’s loads of girls on this division who’ve been busting their ass for years and years,” Pennington advised MiddleEasy of a possible Harrison title shot. “They’re wanting alternatives. I don’t discover it honest.

“I get the enterprise facet of it,” she continued. “However I don’t discover it honest when an athlete is available in and simply because they’ve a giant identify, they get to skip the road. I’m not against preventing anyone. I really like the challenges on the market.”

Pennington, 35, will probably be ready till after UFC 300 for her subsequent opponent on the very least. In the end, she expects the promotion to take the route of going with the previous champion, Julianna Pena, who final fought when dropping her title within the Nunes rematch by way of unanimous determination at UFC 277 in July 2022 (watch highlights).

“In my thoughts it’s Julianna Pena. That’s what me and my crew are making ready for, and it is sensible.” Pennington mentioned of her first title challenger. “It’s powerful as a result of the UFC does enterprise how they wish to do enterprise. Clearly, you might have Kayla Harrison who simply signed to the UFC. They do have a behavior of when somebody has a giant identify, they wish to fast-track them.

“So I wouldn’t be stunned after UFC 300 subsequent month if Kayla wins, if a telephone name is rather a lot totally different after that combat,” she continued. “However we’ll see. For me, I believe it’s Julianna.”