Kayla Harrison truly believes she is the best mixed martial artist in the world.
On October 5, the two-time PFL champion will have the opportunity to prove it when he squares off with Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307 in Salt Lake City. It will be Harrison’s second appearance inside the Octagon following a dominant showing against former bantamweight queen Holly Holm at UFC 300 in April.
KAYLA HARRISON HUST STEAMROLLED THROUGH HOLLY HOLM IN HER UFC DEBUT #UFC300 pic.twitter.com/Vj0UQKrbmB
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) April 14, 2024
A win over Vieira will likely put her in pole position for a shot at the women’s 135-pound title which is currently held by Raquel Pennington. ‘Rocky’ will defend the women’s 135-pound title against ex-champion Julianna Pena the same night, but instead of focusing on their fight with each other, Pennington and ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ seem far more interested in talking about Harrison.
“I think everyone knows that it is only a matter of time [before I become champion],” Harrison told ESPN MMA. “When the truth don’t hurt, they start telling lies.”
Pena has been especially nasty when discussing Harrison, regularly accusing the two-time Olympic gold medalist of using PEDs to get a leg-up on the competition.
“I realize that, like, damn, you don’t work hard enough to look the way I look, and you don’t believe in yourself enough to have this kind of hard work and dedication,” Harrison said while addressing Pena’s comments. “So, I consider it a compliment. I’m all natural and always have been. I have worked my ass off since I was 12 years old and I’m proud.”
She added, “I have never taken steroids and I never will. I don’t believe in it, especially in our sport it is borderline dangerous when you are inflicting damage on each other. I would never taint my legacy in that way.”
Kayla Harrison Hopes to Lure Amanda Nunes Back to the Octagon
“I think she’s a very good fighter. She’s well-rounded, good jiu-jitsu, good striking. And I just feel like everybody is tough until you beat them,” Harrison said. “I’m not going in there with the illusion or delusion of it’s going to be easy or a walk-through. I’ve trained properly. I’ve prepared. My team’s prepared.
“We have an excellent game plan, and I do believe that I’m the best MMA fighter in the world, and when you believe that and you have that belief in your heart, you go out and you act accordingly. The proof will show in my performance.”
It’s already a foregone conclusion that if Harrison defeats Vieira, she’ll fight the winner of Pennington/Pena for the bantamweight title sometime in 2025.
Never one to look too far ahead to the future, Harrison believes that if she succeeds in becoming the top dog at 135, it could be just the thing to entice former two-division titleholder Amanda Nunes back to the fight game.
