Kayla Harrison doesn’t hear any confidence in Juliana Pena and her trash stories.
Pena defends her women’s bantamweight title this Saturday in Newark, New Jersey in the UFC 316 co-main event.
For months, Pena has been constantly destroying Harrison in the media and has won every opportunity she gets at press conferences. Harrison personally doesn’t accept it as he tries to understand the constant verbal barrage of hell.
“For me, it just screams the anxiety it screams,” Harrison told MMA Fighting. “When I watch her story or hear some of her things, it feels like terrifying. It’s not personal to me. She can say anything about me. At the end of the day, we’re locked in a cage.
“I think it’s her. I think it’s part of her shtick. She’s always like a yapping, just like she was with Amanda (Nunes). So I think it’s her personality.
Pena is one of the shots involving Harrison cheating on the charges after claiming that he abused steroids during her career. Those comments cannot be sniffed, given that the two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo thinks he may have endured more drug testing throughout his combat sports career than anyone else on the UFC roster.
“She’s like throwing spaghetti on the wall all the time,” Harrison said. “Before I signed with the UFC, it was like, ‘Well, if she wants to be a real promotion, she has to make real weight and 135 is where it is.’ And I signed with the UFC and now I’m a weight bully, but that’s the only weight class they have.
“I’ve never taken steroids. I first got a drug test when I was in middle school. That was when the US started testing because I was in the top five on the national roster of judo, and I was probably more tested than any athlete in the UFC. So I took the test when I got home.
“I didn’t look like this when I competed in judo because I was 170 pounds. It’s a lot of discipline and there’s a really good team around me that’s fueled me properly. I’m proud of it. I’m proud of my work body. I’m a cop and you’re not speeding up, but you automatically (slower), and I say, ‘Oh, what do you know, I don’t take supplements.’ I had my life (feeling) that. ”
Pena regained the Bantamweight title in a razor decision victory over Raquel Pennington at UFC 307 this October. “Venezuela’s Vixen” won the belt for the first time in December 2021 in a memorable stop over Amanda Nunes in a spectacular upset at UFC 269. Coincidentally, Harrison also played in the UFC 307, on the far right of the decision against Ketren Vieira.
In his Octagon debut after a huge success in the PFL, Harrison destroyed former UFC champion Hollyholm in the UFC 300 and it seemed like a chance to fight for UFC Gold would soon arrive. It’s something Harrison has been visualizing, and continues all the way to the title fight and the moment Dana White wraps her belt around her waist.
“Of course I visualize it every night,” Harrison said. “Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. This is everything. It’s about boldly trying to dream. I know I put it at work. I know I have the best team plan. I can’t wait for that moment.
“The best combat athlete of all time (read by the headline).”