UFC 277: Pena vs. Nunes 2 | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy
- Dana Black
- 6 hours ago
- 8 min read
Introduction
UFC 277: Pena vs. Nunes 2 took place on Saturday, July 30, 2022 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was the rematch of one of the biggest upsets in UFC history, the night Amanda Nunes reclaimed her GOAT status, and the official creation of the interim flyweight title. The card produced an estimated 550,000 pay-per-view buys.
Amanda Nunes fought a clean five-round championship performance. She used her boxing to control distance, her cardio to grind through the championship rounds, and her grappling to dominate when Julianna Pena pressed forward. Final scorecards: 50-44, 50-45, 50-43 — the most lopsided UFC women's bantamweight title fight in nearly six years. Nunes had reclaimed the title she had lost at UFC 269 in stunning fashion.
The co-main was the official creation of the interim flyweight title. Brandon Moreno stopped Kai Kara-France via TKO at 4:34 of round three after dropping Kara-France with a clean knee from the clinch. Moreno was the interim UFC flyweight champion and the formal contender to face Deiveson Figueiredo for the fourth time.
The featured main-card bout saw Magomed Ankalaev stop Anthony Smith via TKO at 4:24 of round two — the win that positioned the Russian light-heavyweight for his eventual title shot at UFC 282 in December 2022 (where he would draw with Jan Blachowicz).
Contents
• FAQ
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Saturday, July 30, 2022
📍 Venue: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas, USA
👥 Attendance: 19,376 (full capacity)
💰 Gate: $4.8 million
📺 PPV Buys: ~550,000
📡 Broadcast: Pay-per-view (ESPN+ in USA)
🏆 Main Event: Julianna Pena (c) vs. Amanda Nunes — UFC Bantamweight Championship (135 lbs)
✅ Result: Nunes def. Pena via Unanimous Decision (50-44, 50-45, 50-43)
🥇 Co-Main: Brandon Moreno def. Kai Kara-France via TKO (knee, punches) — R3, 4:34 — Interim Flyweight Title
The Build-Up
The build-up was about restoration. Amanda Nunes had not lost since 2014 before losing to Pena at UFC 269 — a result that had broken her 12-fight UFC win streak across two divisions and ended her seven-year unbeaten run. The UFC 277 rematch was Nunes's chance to restore her championship reign and her GOAT status; Pena's chance to confirm the upset had been no fluke.
Nunes had spent the eight months between fights addressing the cardio issues that had cost her at UFC 269 — she had reportedly added strength-and-conditioning work, modified her diet, and trained for the championship rounds specifically. Pena had remained largely unchanged in her preparation; she had publicly stated the first win was no fluke. Betting opened Nunes at -350; the line held through fight week.
The co-main was the formal creation of the interim flyweight title — a contender's bout positioned to determine the eventual challenger for Deiveson Figueiredo's title. Brandon Moreno was 1-1-1 against Figueiredo in their previous three meetings; Kai Kara-France was 6-1 in his UFC career with three consecutive UFC wins. Moreno was the -180 favourite.
Main Event: Pena vs. Nunes 2
The rematch was the cleanest five-round performance Nunes had produced since 2019. She used her boxing to control distance through round one, scored a takedown at 2:30, and finished the round on top. The judges had it 10-9 Nunes.
Round two was where the fight changed from the first meeting. Nunes pressed Pena against the cage, landed sustained combinations to the body and head, and avoided the wild exchanges that had given Pena the first-fight finish. By the end of round two, Nunes had landed 67 significant strikes to Pena's 23; the cardio differential was clear.
Rounds three through five were technical dominance. Nunes scored takedowns in rounds three and four, controlled top position for nearly four minutes of round four, and landed sustained ground-and-pound. By the end of round five, Nunes had landed 187 significant strikes to Pena's 64. Final scorecards: 50-44, 50-45, 50-43 — the most lopsided UFC women's bantamweight title fight in nearly six years.
Amanda Nunes was the UFC bantamweight champion for the second time in her career. The series ledger evened to 1-1 between her and Pena. In her post-fight interview, Nunes was magnanimous: "Julianna gave me what I needed. I'm a better fighter now because of her."
Nunes would defend the title once more, against Irene Aldana at UFC 289 in June 2023 (UD), before retiring immediately after with a 23-5 career record at age 35. The Pena loss was the only blemish of her seven-year championship reign.
Co-Main Event: Moreno vs. Kara-France
Brandon Moreno fought a measured three rounds. Round one was Kara-France's — the New Zealand challenger pressed forward with combinations and scored a takedown in the final minute. Rounds two and three were Moreno's; the Mexican champion used his volume striking, his clinch knees, and his cage IQ to wear Kara-France down.
At 4:34 of round three, Moreno landed a clean knee from the clinch that hurt Kara-France, then dropped him with a follow-up left hook. Three follow-up strikes against the cage ended the fight. Moreno was the interim UFC flyweight champion and the formal contender for the eventual fourth meeting with Deiveson Figueiredo.
Moreno and Figueiredo would unify the title at UFC 283 in January 2023 — a third-round TKO win for Moreno that completed the four-fight series with a 2-1-1 ledger in his favour. Moreno held the unified title until UFC 296 in December 2023, when he lost to Brandon Royval.
Full Results
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Amanda Nunes def. Julianna Pena (c) — Unanimous Decision (50-44, 50-45, 50-43) — Bantamweight Title
Brandon Moreno def. Kai Kara-France — TKO (knee, punches) — R3, 4:34 — Interim Flyweight Title
Magomed Ankalaev def. Anthony Smith — TKO (punches) — R2, 4:24 — Light Heavyweight
Alexandre Pantoja def. Alex Perez — Submission (rear-naked choke) — R1, 1:31 — Flyweight
Derrick Lewis def. N/A (Correction: Sergei Pavlovich def. Derrick Lewis via TKO R1, 0:55) — Heavyweight
Preliminary Card (ESPN/ESPN+)
Drew Dober def. Rafael Alves — KO (punches) — R2, 1:25 — Lightweight
Hamdy Abdelwahab def. Don'Tale Mayes — Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) — Heavyweight
Nicolae Negumereanu def. Ihor Potieria — Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) — Light Heavyweight
Joselyne Edwards def. Ji Yeon Kim — Unanimous Decision (29-28 ×3) — Women's Bantamweight
Bonuses & Awards
🥇 Performance of the Night: Amanda Nunes — $50,000 for the dominant five-round unanimous-decision win to reclaim the bantamweight title.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Magomed Ankalaev — $50,000 for the second-round TKO of Anthony Smith.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Alexandre Pantoja — $50,000 for the first-round rear-naked choke of Alex Perez.
Records & Milestones
• Amanda Nunes reclaimed the UFC bantamweight title — the only loss of her seven-year championship reign avenged.
• Brandon Moreno became the interim UFC flyweight champion — his second UFC title-fight win after his UFC 263 title win over Figueiredo.
• Magomed Ankalaev's TKO of Anthony Smith positioned him for the title shot that would come at UFC 282 in December 2022.
• Pena-Nunes final series ledger: 1-1 across two meetings.
• Sergei Pavlovich's first-round KO of Derrick Lewis — the third consecutive Lewis defeat and a launching pad for Pavlovich's six-fight UFC win streak.
Legacy & Impact
UFC 277 is remembered as the night Amanda Nunes reclaimed her GOAT status and the night Brandon Moreno positioned himself for the fourth meeting with Deiveson Figueiredo. The rematch result — a clean five-round technical performance — confirmed that the UFC 269 upset had been a result of Nunes's cardio failure, not a fundamental gap in skill.
For Amanda Nunes, UFC 277 was the second-to-last UFC fight of her career. She defended the title once more, against Irene Aldana at UFC 289 in June 2023 (UD), and retired immediately after at age 35 with a 23-5 career record. The Pena loss was the only blemish of her seven-year championship reign and the most-discussed asterisk in her GOAT case.
For Julianna Pena, the loss was the closing of her championship window. She did not fight again for over a year and a half (a UD loss to Raquel Pennington at UFC 297 in January 2024), and has remained a top-tier bantamweight contender into the mid-2020s without another title shot.
For Brandon Moreno, the interim title win positioned him for the fourth meeting with Figueiredo at UFC 283 in January 2023 — a third-round TKO win that completed the four-fight rivalry with a 2-1-1 ledger in Moreno's favour. Moreno held the unified title until UFC 296 in December 2023, when he lost to Brandon Royval.
For Magomed Ankalaev, the TKO of Anthony Smith was the launching pad for his light-heavyweight title shot. He drew with Jan Blachowicz at UFC 282 in December 2022, then went on to win a majority decision over Blachowicz in their rematch at UFC FN in January 2024. He won the unified light-heavyweight title against Alex Pereira at UFC 313 in March 2025.
FAQ
What changed for Nunes between the two fights?
Cardio. The UFC 269 loss had been driven by Nunes's cardio failure in round two; she had been visibly fatigued by the 2:30 mark of the round and the rear-naked choke submission had followed within 90 seconds. For UFC 277, Nunes reportedly added strength-and-conditioning work, modified her diet to focus on sustained energy delivery, and trained for the championship rounds specifically. The result was clear in the in-cage product: Nunes's output in rounds three through five at UFC 277 was nearly identical to her output in rounds one and two.
Did Nunes and Pena fight a third time?
No. UFC 277 was the final meeting between them. Nunes retired in June 2023 after her UFC 289 title defense; Pena fought once more at UFC 297 in January 2024 (UD loss to Raquel Pennington). Final ledger: 1-1 across two meetings.
Why was an interim flyweight title created?
To produce a definitive contender for Deiveson Figueiredo's fourth meeting with Brandon Moreno. Figueiredo had won the trilogy bout at UFC 270 in January 2022 to make the series 1-1-1; the UFC needed a #1 contender for the fourth fight. The Moreno-Kara-France interim title bout served that purpose, with Moreno's TKO confirming him as the contender.
Did Moreno and Figueiredo fight again?
Once more. The fourth meeting came at UFC 283 in January 2023 — a third-round TKO win for Moreno that unified the flyweight title and made the final ledger 2-1-1 in his favour. Moreno held the unified title until UFC 296 in December 2023, when he lost to Brandon Royval. The four-fight Figueiredo-Moreno series remains the longest championship rivalry in UFC flyweight history.
Did Nunes retire after this?
No, but soon after. Nunes defended the title once more, against Irene Aldana at UFC 289 in June 2023 (UD), and retired immediately after at age 35. Her final UFC career record was 23-5 — the most decorated women's championship reign in UFC history. The Pena loss was the only blemish of her seven-year championship reign.
How does UFC 277 compare to UFC 276?
UFC 277 drew approximately 550,000 PPV buys versus UFC 276 (600,000) four weeks earlier. The 50,000-buy drop reflected the absence of an International Fight Week framing and the lower marquee value of a women's bantamweight title rematch versus a Volkanovski-Holloway trilogy. UFC 277's gate of $4.8 million was a strong number for an American Airlines Center card.
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