Raquel Pennington outlasted and beat Mayra Bueno Silva for the vacant women’s bantamweight championship at UFC 297.
After divisional GOAT Amanda Nunes retired in Vancouver in 2023, 2024 began with Toronto hosting the crowning of a new bantamweight queen. New mom Raquel Pennington had fought for the belt once before and has only ever lost to former champions in her UFC career, but of course if she lost to Mayra then ‘Sheetara’ would also have been a champion who she lost to. That was not to be, as Pennington became champion with her veteran grit and cardio in a well-rounded performance.
Silva faced inconsistencies as a UFC flyweight, going 1-2-1 in 2021-22. However, after moving up to bantamweight she reeled off four straight wins, including three submissions, to earn this title shot. Referring to her submission of Holly Holm as a win in her last fight seems appropriate, given that the UFC gave her a title shot despite a positive post-fight drug test. That drug test was for her own prescribed ADHD medication.
Pennington began round one aggressive with her kickboxing; Mayra clinched up in response. Silva targeted the calf kick and Raquel went for a takedown. Mayra defended and landed three elbows to punish the attempt, then landed her own takedown. Pennington turned to stand up but Sheetara took her back with two hooks in against the fence. It took Raquel a while to clear the hooks, and Bueno Silva just took her down again and put them back when she did. Mayra closed the round on the back.
Raquel started round two aggressively, but Silva shut that down with her clinch game. Pennington broke free after a minute and landed some straight punches, but Mayra just marched back into the clinch. Silva landed some body shots but then Pennington staggered her with punches. Raquel clinched up despite hurting her, allowing Sheetara to take her back, get close to a rear-naked choke, and win the rest of the round.
The third round presented a similar pattern to the second. Raquel was aggressive on the feet but the clinch was a safety valve for Silva. Sheetara attacked a ninja choke but Pennington escaped. Raquel reversed the position and ended up on top. When she welcomed Mayra back to the feet, Mayra stood up slowly and with great effort. Pennington slammed uppercuts to the stomach in the clinch and took down Silva, wearing even more on an already-depleted gas tank as the third round ended.
The championship rounds started with a clinch, despite the advice of both corners. Silva perhaps found a second wind as she exploded to land two elbows and then took Pennington’s back. Sheetara slid her forearm under Raquel’s chin for the choke and it was uncomfortable for a moment but she fell off and ended up losing the position. Mayra attacked a triangle and an armbar as Pennington punched her. Pennington avoided both with ease and dove back into Silva’s guard with a few massive right hands at the close of the fourth round.
Both threw heavy hands to start the final round but then ended up in the clinch after thirty seconds. Mayra dropped down for an ill-advised kneebar attempt which left her mounted. Pennington instantly attacked the arm-triangle but Sheetara gave the referee a thumbs-up to indicate her consciousness. Raquel refused to step off the mount to have a better chance of finishing the choke, valuing position over submission and grapevining Silva’s legs. The referee called for more action and Pennington stepped off finally, but Mayra turned to her side to make the angle worse, then regained half-guard. Raquel stood up and kicked at Silva’s legs as she laid on her back for the final thirty seconds.
It seemed that her superior gas tank had earned Raquel Pennington the final three rounds, at least. The judges have the opinions that matter and they more than agreed, with all of them giving her four rounds. One judge even gave her a 10-8 somewhere, for a total of 49-45. Raquel got the gold belt wrapped around her waist as UFC women’s bantamweight champion and expressed how surreal it feels in her post-fight interview.
Pennington responded to the comments of former champion Juliana Pena by telling her, “Sign on the dotted line, I’ve been waiting ten years,” meaning it looks like fans will see Pennington vs Pena next for the belt in this division.
Official Result: Raquel Pennington def. Mayra Bueno Silva by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)
