Pannie Kianzad gets her wish, and will fight “Rocky” in September.
Swedish outlet Frontkick was first to report that No. 11 ranked bantamweight Kianzad will fight former title challenger Raquel Pennington on September 18 at a yet-to-be-announced UFC event. Both fighters would confirm the booking on social media.
Kianzad (15-5) is coming off a unanimous decision win over Alexis Davis last month at UFC 263. After the win, she called for a fight with Pennington, a fight that she said was already booked. The Swedish fighter is riding a four-fight win streak with wins over Sijara Eubanks, Bethe Correia, and Jessica-Rose Clark. A win over the former title challenger will get her that much closer to a shot at Amanda Nunes.
Pennington (11-8) will return off a six-month suspension when she returns to the octagon. Before her suspension, she went 1-1 in 2020, losing to Holly Holm to start the year off but then defeating Marion Reneau via unanimous decision five months later. “Rocky” was ranked No. 4 in the bantamweight division before being removed due to inactivity.
The promotion has announced no location, venue, or broadcast details for the September 18 UFC event.
So far, the Fight Night card looks like this:
- Anthony Smith vs. Ryan Spann
- Montel Jackson vs. Batgerel Danaa
- Dakota Bush vs. Zhu Rong
- Devin Clark vs. Ion Cutelaba
- Mike Rodriguez vs. Tafon Nchukwi
- Impa Kasanganay vs. Carlston Harris
- Jim Miller vs. Nikolas Motta
- Pannie Kianzad vs. Raquel Pennington
