Julianna Pena defends Edmond Tarverdyan

UFC women’s bantamweight contender Julianna Pena appeared recently on Submission Radio and defended Ronda Rousey’s controversial coach Edmond Tarverdyan.

I think Edmond’s great,” she said. “I think he’s the only one that could possibly have handled that chick in that type of setting and been able to put up with her crap. You know what I mean? What he’s done for Ronda is wonders. I don’t think that anybody could have done a better job than him or that anybody would have put up with as much as bullcrap as he’s put up with, besides him. So my hat is off to him.

“At the end of the day, it’s not necessarily his battle, it’s Ronda’s battle. Edmond can’t get in there and fight for her. So that’s what’s so hard about this sport, it’s live or die by the double-edge sword. You have to be able to perform, like she even said herself, on your worst day possible. And so she wasn’t able to perform, and nobody is to blame besides herself. She can’t say that she wasn’t ready or that she wasn’t prepared. She’s had all the time in the world to get ready for this fight.

“So I think a lot of people come up with a bunch of excuses, but at the end of the day, it’s just not your day, and sometimes you just gotta give credit where credit is due, and it was Amanda’s night. So that’s it.

Pena also said she watched the UFC 207 main event wishing she was in there vs. champion Amanda Nunes.

“I thought it was funny because I went into the UFC office and I asked Dana for the title shot and he said, ‘No, we’re not going to give it to you yet because Ronda’s coming back.’ And I said, ‘Well you should give it me because I’ll put up a better fight than she will.’ And he said, ‘no, well her name’s big, you know, it’s Ronda Rousey. You’re just going to have to fight one more time and then maybe you’ll get a title shot.’

“And then so at that point I was frustrated and I knew I wasn’t going to get it, so I just had to accept those terms and conditions. And then when I watched the fight and saw that Ronda laid an egg, I kind of hit the nail on the head as to what I was saying all along in that she was going to get knocked out. So I was right, and now I look like a genius. So that’s great.

Pena also discussed Ronda Rousey’s media blackout.

I thought it was funny,” she said. “It was like, don’t bite the hands that feeds you. The media is the one responsible for making Ronda the superstar that she was and making her this untouchable force that no one could ever beat, and so I think that it was kind of unusual that she was not going to do any media. But that just goes to show the kind of personality that she has. She’s a brat and she’s spoilt and she’s used to getting her way on everything. So once again it was just one of those things where she’s going to get her way and throw a fit until she gets her way, and that’s exactly what happened.

“I think it’s funny because I was looking back at a post that I had made with MMA Fighting, and I said that, spoilt brat has gotten everything handed to her and she’s getting everything handed to her again. It’s bulls***. And I said, never in the history have I ever heard of somebody having a no-controversy brutal knockout, then quit the sport and then come back and get a title show right away. I said, the girl’s mentally weak and Amanda Nunes is gonna knock her ass out and expose her. So I think it’s funny because I predicted what was gonna happen, and that’s exactly what happened. So no media, media, media till the cows come home – It doesn’t matter. Ronda Rousey is mentally weak and she was literally handpicking her fights from the very beginning, and in my opinion she’s the worst girl on the roster.

“If you take a year off from the sport and you don’t train and stuff like that, the sport is going to evolve and it’s going to continue without you. And if you don’t take any warm-up fight or any sort of tune-up fight, if you will, then you’re going to be in a world of hurt. And unfortunately, I don’t think anybody is feeling it much more than she is. So my thoughts are with her and every dog has its day, and I wish her the best, but at the end of the day, what did you think was gonna happen?

Pena said she will be “absolutely’ disappointed if she never gets the chance to fight Rousey.

“I think that she was avoiding me all along,” said Pena. “I beat her whole team, I ran through her whole entire team on the Ultimate Fighter. When Dana White allowed women into the UFC and she fought one girl in the UFC, I fought four girls and I beat them all and they were all under Team Rousey. She should have wanted to fight me after I beat her whole team’s ass instead of them saying, ‘Oh you’re not ready for a title shot, we’re to give you Jessica Andrade instead.’ And then I would have beaten Jessica Andrade and they would have said, ‘Well you need a couple more and a couple more.’ That girl’s been dodging me from day one and she knows it. And that’s all I have to say. I think it’s very disappointing if she does retire, because yeah, I wasn’t one that was able to dethrone her. But I think she knows at the end of the day that I am a nightmare match up for her. I’m a nightmare

“I think it’s very disappointing if she does retire, because yeah, I wasn’t one that was able to dethrone her. But I think she knows at the end of the day that I am a nightmare match up for her. I’m a nightmare match up for any of these girls in this division and she did not want to get locked in the cage with me, and it’s as simple as that.

Rather than wait for a title fight, Pena has taken a #1 contender fight with Valentina Shevchenko. Pena is undefeated in the UFC with four fights, and three more on The Ultimate Fighter 18: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate. She is currently ranked the #2 contender in the UFC, with Valentina Shevchenko ranked #1.

I think they were really wanting me to take this fight and they kept pushing and pushing and pushing and pushing and kept telling me, ‘Oh, other girls will fight in the division. They’re going to pass you up and they’re going to get the title shot if you don’t take this fight,'” she said. “And I was gonna say, ‘I am not gonna allow somebody to step in front of me again and get a title shot ahead of me.’ So I think that with a combination of a lot of pressure from the UFC – which is fine because I’m a company girl and I want to do what’s best for the company – and with a lot of pressure from the fans, them saying that I’m afraid of her, and Valentina herself telling me that I’m afraid of her. It has nothing to do with beating anyone, it has everything to do with politics. I deserve a title shot. I’ve deserved a title shot, but you guys don’t think that or the fans don’t think that. So now I’m gonna go put my title and put my record on the line again, and I’m gonna go once again and show everybody why I deserve the title shot and why I am the rightful champion.

“It has nothing to do with beating anyone, it has everything to do with politics. I deserve a title shot. I’ve deserved a title shot, but you guys don’t think that or the fans don’t think that. So now I’m gonna go put my title and put my record on the line again, and I’m gonna go once again and show everybody why I deserve the title shot and why I am the rightful champion.

Even with a win over Shevchenko, Pena has not been offered a guaranteed title shot.

Listen, nothing in this business is guaranteed,” she explained. “I’m fighting in the Ultimate Entertainment Championship, and so it’s what makes sense entertainment-wise. So it’s whatever makes sense for them is what’s going to happen. Because it’s been making sense for me to get a title shot for a couple years now and they still haven’t given it to me and I can’t understand why. But I know that if I win again, there should be no controversy as to why I’m not getting this title shot. And so I’m just putting my good faith in the UFC and being this company girl and putting all my trust in the fact that they’re going to do right by me, god willing I win this fight, and that’s exactly on what I plan on doing.

“I bite down on my mouthpiece and I come forward and I go get in her face, just like I do with all these other girls. So the gameplan has not changed. It’s stick to what you know and you know how to fight and morning, noon and night. And that’s all I’m worried about.

Official prediction:

I think I’m gonna smash her into smashed potatoes this time instead of mash potatoes.