Norma Dumont isn’t happy with UFC’s decisions at the top of the bantamweight division.
Raquel Pennington beat Mayra Bueno Silva to win the 135-pound championship in January and puts it on the line—for the first time nearly nine months—when she faces Julianna Peña in the co-main event of UFC 307 on Oct. 5. Peña hasn’t fought in 25 months, when she lost a title bout to Amanda Nunes.
At Saturday’s UFC 306 event in Las Vegas, Dumont faces Irene Aldana with the aim of extending her winning streak to five. Even then, she doesn’t expect her next bout to be for the belt.
“I highly doubt [I’m next] because of this ridiculous Julianna vs. Raquel fight,” Dumont said in an interview with MMA Fighting. “Julianna, for the love of God… Julianna was out for two-and-a-half years, running from everybody, and then was gifted this fight with Pennington. It’s going to be hard to watch.”
Peña was the only woman to beat Nunes during her run as UFC champion, submitting “The Lioness” in 2021 but then losing the rematch. Dumont doesn’t think anyone should put too much stock on Peña’s feat to begin with.
“Not taking any merit away from Julianna, but Amanda wasn’t well that night,” Dumont said. “Amanda came back and put a beating on her. That was a beating for five people and Julianna took everything by herself. She was licking her wounds for two-and-a-half years and was still rewarded with a title shot? Come on, man. Why not give it to Irene then, who also got beat up by Amanda but at least stayed on the feet for five rounds, at least trying to threaten until the very end? And came back to beat Karol Rosa? Nah, give to Julianna, who went hiding for two-and-a-half years.”
“I think Pennington wins for being more complete and being tougher than Julianna,” she continued. “The winner of Kayla Harrison vs. Ketlen [Vieira at UFC 307] makes sense for the next in line because [the UFC] put Kayla right there even though she has only beaten an over-the-hill [Holly Holm]. But she’s American, she’s an Olympic champion, and we know how the game works. We’ll have to fight through that. Or maybe Ketlen wins and they finally give her the shot. No way she beats Kayla and they don’t do it, right? But I don’t expect her to win because of the matchup. They have similar styles but Kayla is much stronger and larger than her.”
Dumont is confident that she will win against Aldana and ultimately fight once again to enter the discussion for gold. She predicts that Pennington beats Peña and then faces Harrison, with the two-time Olympic gold medalist emerging victorious.
“And then I’ll probably fight Julianna or Ketlen next,” Dumont said. “Or maybe Macy [Chiasson]. But since we already fought — although it was at 145 [pounds], I don’t know if they would do it again. There’s no other fight for me than the belt if I beat [Aldana and then] one of these three, Julianna, Macy or Ketlen. Kayla will have nowhere to hide, she will have to fight me.”
Dumont said she hopes to be paired up against Peña in early 2025, and advises Peña to reconsider her fighting career if she’s against that idea.
“Go away and retire already,” Dumont said. “Julianna is the one I would really like to put a beating on. I don’t like Julianna, and it would super interesting for me. Macy and Ketlen, that would be just work.”
Aldana is standing in her way to the top, though Dumont isn’t worried about possibly dealing with enemy territory vibes at Sphere, with the UFC celebrating Mexican Independence Day that night.
“It obviously is a tribute to Mexicans but it’s in Las Vegas, and Las Vegas is my home,” Dumont said. “I fought eight times in Las Vegas and never lost. I agreed to fight her in Mexico City earlier this year so I don’t care. I’m fighting Irene, not the crowd, so I’m even more comfortable fighting in Vegas. I’m just knocking off the obstacles on my way to get where I want: the belt. The UFC is pushing me closer to the top and everybody’s prey to be there, and I’m on a hunt.”
Dumont has won her past four fights via decision, including a recent victory over ex-UFC featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie, while Aldana rebounded from a title bout loss to Nunes with a unanimous decision against Karol Rosa in late 2023. Aldana has never been finished in 13 octagon appearances, and Dumont won’t give away her strategy.
“It’s state secret,” Dumont said with a laugh. “There’s a lot of Brazilians on her team watching my Instagram. I saw them the day this fight got booked. I see you all, every day [laughs]. But I have the skills to beat Irene everywhere, both on the feet and on the ground. Irene has good boxing and heavy hands, but she has holes on her striking, against the cage, and holes on the ground. We’ll exploit that with all my weapons to beat her.”
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