UFC 289: Amanda Nunes retires after decimating Irene Aldana (Video)

UFC 289: Amanda Nunes retires after dominating Irene Aldana.

Amanda Nunes defeated Irene Aldana via unanimous decision (50-44, 50-44, 50-43), at UFC 289 on Saturday, June 10, 2023, live from the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada.

"Double champion forever. Tonight is the perfect night to retire. My mom has been asking me for so long. She cannot take it anymore. Nina has been with me for so long. I got a family, I've got to spent more time with and my family in Brazil. Thank you to every single person who makes this show happen. I come from a small city in Brazil. No one knows where it is. I came to be a champion, Brazil's only champion. Someone from Brazil come get that championship," said Nunes, who put down both of her belts and gloves down in the middle of the Octagon.

Nunes retires as one of the greatest mixed martial artists in history, regardless of gender. Nunes finishes her career with a 23-5 record with 17 finishes and eight title decisions, six at bantamweight and two at featherweight.

Nunes opened with a body kick and calf kick to get the action started. Nunes landed another body kick and took down Aldana, only to let her get back up. Nunes landed a left jab. Aldana landed her first punch of the fight but Nunes continued to control the round. Nunes mixed shots to the body with leg kicks. Aldana looked completely overmatched as Nunes continued to land several punches. Aldana landed a powerful counter right hook that landed clean on the jaw.

Nunes continued to pick apart Aldana early in the second round. Nunes landed strikes and leg kicks whenever she wanted to. Aldana's lead leg was suffering a lot of damage from all of the leg kicks. Nunes tossed Aldana to the ground but again decided to let her stand up. Nunes landed a combination that finished with a knee to the head. Nunes continued to significantly outland Aldana. At the end of the round, Nunes tackled Aldana but decided to stand the fight up again.

Nunes opened the third round with a combination and proceeded to pick up her pace. Nunes backed Aldana up with punches. Aldana had little sense of urgency and made the fight look like a one sided sparing session. Nunes scored another takedown and this time decided to stay on the ground and grapple. Aldana got back to her feet only to have Nunes return her to the canvas immediately. Nunes let Aldana up and took her down again. Nunes took the back but Aldana was able to escape. Nunes continued to tee off with her right hand.

Nunes continued her domination, landing her jab at will and landing a powerful elbow that opened up a cut. Aldana defended a pair of takedowns. Nunes eventually scored another takedown but let Aldana get back up. Nunes landed a powerful two-punch combo as she continued to completely dominate the fight. Aldana's face was showing all of the damage as Nunes continued to significantly outland her.

Nunes' corner informed her that she had won the first four rounds and could be cautious and move out of danger. Nunes opened up the final round with another takedown, giving her the most takedowns in women's bantamweight history. The takedown allowed Nunes to control the entire round as she moved into mount and landed numerous strikes.

Nunes regained her bantamweight title at UFC 277, extracting revenge on Julianna Pena who defeated Nunes at UFC 269. Originally, Nunes and Pena were supposed to fight for a third time. However, broken ribs forced Pena out of the fight.

Aldana entered as the UFC's fifth-ranked bantamweight after back-to-back knockout victories. In her last fight, Aldana earned a performance bonus after stopping Macy Chiasson with an upkick. Aldana dropped to 14-7 with the loss.

UFC 289: Amanda Nunes vs. Irene Aldana took place on Saturday, June 10, 2023, live from Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada. Follow along with FanSided MMA for all your news and highlights.

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