![https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=22nhPg_0vEEWf5L00](https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&url=22nhPg_0vEEWf5L00)
A consistent blue-collar approach allowed
Raquel Pennington to ascend all the way to the top of the
Ultimate Fighting Championship ladder at 135 pounds. The question now centers on how long it can give her to enjoy the view.
“Rocky” will defend her undisputed women’s bantamweight crown when she faces former titleholder
Julianna Pena in the
UFC 307 co-headliner on Oct. 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City. Pennington approaches the encounter on the strength of a career-best six-fight winning streak. She last competed at UFC 297, where she took a five-round unanimous decision from
American Top Team ’s
Mayra Bueno Silva and laid claim to the vacant 135-pound championship on Jan. 20. “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 18 semifinalist outlanded Silva by a staggering 265-96 margin and racked up more than 11 minutes of control time.
As Pennington sets her sights on her first title defense against Pena, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied her to this point:
35: Years of age for Pennington, who was born in Colorado Springs on Sept. 5, 1988. Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine,”
Robert Palmer ’s “Simply Irresistible,” Huey Lewis & The News’ “Perfect World,” George Michael’s “Monkey” and Van Halen’s “When It’s Love” were the Top 5 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 list at the time.
4: Pennington victories by submission, accounting for 25% of her career total (16). Her methods of choice: two guillotine chokes, one rear-naked choke and one bulldog choke. Pennington holds one other victory by knockout or technical knockout (6%)—she wrecked
Kim Couture with knees to the body in her March 2012 pro debut—and 11 more by decision (69%).
222: Days spent by Pennington as undisputed UFC women’s bantamweight champion. Only
Amanda Nunes (2,306),
Ronda Rousey (1,074) and the aforementioned Pena (232) have spent more time lording over the weight class.
232: Seconds needed for Pennington to put away
Raquel Canuto with a guillotine choke under the Destiny MMA banner on Sept. 8, 2012. Nearly 12 years later, it remains her fastest finish to date.
68: Rounds started by Pennington as a professional mixed martial artist. She has gone the distance on 17 different occasions and carries an 11-6 record in those bouts.
1,056: Significant strikes landed by Pennington as a UFC women’s bantamweight, placing her first on the promotion’s all-time list at 135 pounds.
50,000: Dollars in post-fight bonuses banked by Pennington across her 18 appearances in the UFC. She has been awarded “Performance of the Night” once.
5: Promotions for which Pennington has plied her MMA trade. In addition to her 13-5 mark in the UFC, she has gone 1-2 in
Invicta Fighting Championships , 1-0 in Destiny MMA, 1-0 Medieval Fight Productions and 0-1 in Rocky Mountain Bad Boyz.
6,035: Feet above sea level for Altitude MMA, where Pennington trains on a daily basis in Colorado Springs.
.695: Cumulative winning percentage between the seven women—Nunes,
Holly Holm (twice),
Germaine de Randamie ,
Jessica Andrade ,
Leslie Smith ,
Cat Zingano and
Tori Adams —who have beaten Pennington. They sport a combined record of 101-44-1.
Comments / 0