Dana White Casts Doubt on Future of UFC Women’s Featherweight Division

Amanda Nunes is retiring from mixed martial arts, and it appears there’s a good chance she’s taking the UFC women’s featherweight division with her.

UFC president Dana White briefly addressed the future of the weight class at the UFC 289 post-fight press conference, indicating that the Las Vegas-based promotion wouldn’t go forward with women’s 145-pound fights in the wake of Nunes’ retirement. Though nothing is set in stone, White has previously hinted that the division would likely dissolve when Nunes left the UFC.

“The answer is probably yes,” White said on whether the division would be closed. “I mean, I don’t make these decisions the night of the fight. She told me when she walked over to the side of the cage that she was retiring. Yeah, I don’t know. But it makes sense.”

The inaugural women’s featherweight title was contested at UFC 208 in February 2017, with Germaine de Randamie defeating Holly Holm to claim the belt. De Randamie would later vacate the crown, and Cristiane Justino captured the belt by besting Tonya Evinger at UFC 214. “Cyborg” defended the title twice before suffering the upset loss to Nunes at UFC 232 that made “Lioness” a two-division champion. The promotion held a featherweight-themed “Ultimate Fighter” in 2018, but female bouts at 145 pounds have been infrequent in recent years, and the promotion’s rankings on its website listed no fighter beyond Nunes.

Meanwhile, other organizations have promoted more women’s featherweight fights in recent years. Justino is the reigning champion at 145 pounds for Bellator, and PFL just launched the division as part of its 2023 season. Nunes’ last featherweight title defense came in March 2021, when she submitted Megan Anderson in the opening stanza at UFC 259.