Fighting injured has been part of MMA since the sport began. Fighters often hide injuries from fans, media, and sometimes even their own teams. They know that showing weakness can give opponents a mental edge before the fight even starts.<\/p>
The women’s bantamweight division has been particularly brutal when it comes to this warrior mentality. Amanda Nunes fought through countless injuries during her championship runs. Ronda Rousey competed with various ailments throughout her dominant streak. Now fans are learning that Julianna Pena continued this tradition in her recent title defense against Kayla Harrison at UFC<\/a> 316. The difference is that Pena’s injuries might have been severe enough to change the entire outcome of the fight.<\/p> Julianna Pena dropped a bombshell recently about her UFC 316 title defense against Kayla Harrison. The former champion revealed she went into that fight dealing with what she called a “severe handicap.” Pena revealed via The Ariel Helwani Show<\/strong> that she was dealing with legitimate injuries with one of the most dangerous grapplers in the sport.<\/p> “I was plagued with several injuries heading into that fight. It wasn’t a good camp for me in that sense, because I knew that I was going into the fight with a pretty severe handicap. It crossed my mind [to withdraw] but it wasn’t bad enough to the point where I would have to not fight, because I knew I was going to be able to push through…I don’t regret competing, I just wish I could’ve competed under better circumstances.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>Julianna Pena Reveals She Fought With Injuries <\/h2>