Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes have a well documented history with each other, ahead of their suspected fight in the UFC.
This past June at UFC 316, Kayla Harrison proved once again why she is one of the greatest athletes in the world when she won the UFC bantamweight title, submitting Julianna Pena in round two.
Immediately after the fight, Harrison was faced with the fighter she will make her first title defense against, as Amanda Nunes stepped into the Octagon for a face off.
And with the UFC set to host an event at the UFC White House in 2026, it seemed inevitable that their only current American champion, Harrison, would compete on the event.
Harrison sparred Nunes before she even made her first MMA appearance
With the fight continuing to be talked about, Nunes officially re-entered the UFC drug testing pool earlier this year, allowing for negotiations to begin properly.
A fight between Harrison and Nunes, who is widely regarded as the greatest female fighter ever, would be one of the biggest women’s fights ever.
Not only because of both fighters’ skills, but also because Harrison and Nunes used to be teammates at American Top Team and have trained with each other before.
And Harrison has somewhat lifted the lid on how their training sessions together went, making a shock admission about their sparring.
“She is a big reason for me moving down to Florida, I had tried a bunch of different gyms and I came down and met Mike Brown, my second day there I sparred her and I was like, ‘Holy s—‘,” Harrison told MMA Junkie.
“Yeah (on the second day I sparred her), I don’t know what (they were thinking), yeah, it was sketchy, but ok. I hadn’t had an MMA fight yet actually.
“Our paths didn’t cross much in training because she was already up here and had a lot of privates and 1 on 1’s, but I always made myself readily available… We trained a little bit but not a lot, which for me was unfortunate,” Harrison continued.
Harrison ‘has some ideas’ for after she beats Nunes
Harrison is hoping to fight ‘The Lioness’ at the beginning of 2026, potentially even before the UFC hosts an event at the White House.
And although many fans believe that if she defeats the Brazilian there isn’t anything left for her to achieve in the sport, the 35-year-old has revealed she has ‘some ideas’ for after that fight.
“No (I wouldn’t retire), I have some ideas but step by step, one thing at a time. I’ve got, really, yeah, if it all goes according to plan, yeah, I think it’s gonna be great, I’m very excited about the future.
“I’ve gotta go put on my work boots and train hard and beat Amanda and when I do that then there’s gonna be a lot of opportunities I think,” Harrison continued.