Amanda Nunes Reveals Kayla Harrison Was Part of the Reason She Left Her Team

Tudor Leonte

May 19, 2022

It’s not easy to train side-by-side with your rivals. Earlier this year, former Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division titleholder Amanda Nunes shocked the world when she announced she would be leaving the American Top Team and fighting under the banner of her own team moving forward. The decision maturated after the “Lioness” lost her bantamweight championship to Julianna Pena at UFC 269, where the Brazilian tapped to a rear-naked choke at the 3:26 mark of Round 2.

While speaking with MMA Fighting, Nunes revealed that she felt uncomfortable training and sharing her coaches with some rivals, including UFC bantamweight Yana Kunitskaya and two-time Professional Fighters League champion Kayla Harrison. At the time, Kunitskaya was one victory away from becoming the no. 1 contender at Nunes’ 135-pound belt, while Harrison was inches away from signing a UFC contract that would likely offer her a featherweight matchup with the “Lioness” as soon as possible.

“There were no girls when I got to American Top Team,” Nunes said. “I was the first woman to bring two belts and put the women’s team in history. When Kayla got there and then Kunitskaya, it began creating a weird situation for me because that was my territory. Other bantamweights were coming. Kunitskaya, who was already at the top and could’ve been a future opponent with a win over Ketlen [Vieira in 2021]. She got there right, when she was close to becoming the next opponent. She showed up in the gym and I had a scare when I walked in. I was like, ‘No, it’s not possible.’ It was creating this situation already. And then Kayla started talking. I was kind of, ‘Man, I’m not safe even in my territory.’ I was kind of cornered, even because we share the same coaches. She trains with Mike Brown and I train with Mike Brown. I was already training with them when she got there.”

Nunes is still the reigning UFC 145-pound titleholder. In her latest fight at featherweight, she retained the undisputed featherweight crown after demolishing Megan Anderson thanks to a triangle armbar at UFC 259, forcing her opponent to tap 2:03 into Round 1.