Can underdog Julianna Peña pull off another title-fight shocker?

Julianna Peña is successful her 2nd reign arsenic UFC women's bantamweight champion. In winning 3 of her past 4 fights, she has beaten 2 different champs. That's the benignant of résumé that should situate a combatant connected apical of the world. And yet the MMA satellite continues to discount Peña.

She defends her loop Saturday astatine UFC 316 successful Newark, New Jersey (ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET), and contempt her opponent, Kayla Harrison, being a comparative newcomer who has been hardly tested astatine the sport's highest level, Peña volition beryllium the 1 going into the combat arsenic a sizable betting underdog.

So what other is new?

For Peña, being overlooked is her beingness story. Growing up successful Spokane, Washington, arsenic the youngest of 4 children, she was a regular people of her older brother's roughhousing. "He was a gigantic WWE fan, and helium bushed the snot retired of maine and my 2 older sisters," Peña told ESPN, adding with a smile, "I was his favorite, due to the fact that I would ne'er cry, and, adjacent though helium was truthful overmuch bigger and stronger than me, I kept attacking him with everything I had."

Persevering done conflict royals with an Andre the Giant wannabe fell close successful enactment with her upbringing by a parent determined to instill toughness successful her youngest.

"She utilized to archer me, 'You volition basal up for yourself,'" Peña recalled. "My ma enactment that tone wrong of me, of ne'er backing down."

This volition beryllium Peña's 4th consecutive combat arsenic an underdog. Most famously, she overcame the fourth-longest likelihood successful UFC rubric combat past to taxable Amanda Nunes. She mislaid the 2022 rematch 7 months later, but past October she recaptured the rubric by dethroning Raquel Pennington, who was favored successful their combat by astir 2-to-1 odds.

How agelong has it been since Peña walked into the cage arsenic a favorite? It past happened mode backmost successful 2021, erstwhile she defeated Sara McMann astatine UFC 257. The headliner that nighttime was a long-inactive chap by the sanction of Conor McGregor. Remember him?

Peña had to flooded obstacles connected her mode to the large show. She was connected a two-fight losing streak connected the determination country successful 2013 erstwhile she was formed connected Season 18 of the UFC's world TV show, "The Ultimate Fighter," yet she won the amusement and a UFC declaration nether the coaching of her person and grooming spouse Miesha Tate. The opposing team's manager was Tate's bitter rival, ascendant champ Ronda Rousey, and the vigor betwixt them spilled implicit to the fighters. That animosity drew Peña each the mode to Australia a mates years aboriginal to basal against "Rowdy Ronda" successful a rubric combat with Holly Holm that was wide expected to beryllium a mismatch. "I was beforehand row, cheering Holly on, giving her each my energy," Peña recalled. "When they entered the Octagon, I retrieve [Holm] pacing backmost and distant successful her corner. And I stood up astatine my spot and was pointing to her, yelling, 'You got this! You tin bash this!'"

As it turned out, of course, Holm could bash it. As an unimaginable +870 underdog, she picked apart, frustrated and bloodied Rousey connected the mode to a vicious second-round knockout.

"I was beyond ecstatic to spot Holly bash that. It was truthful inspiring to see," Peña said. "The things I took distant from that combat were that the full satellite tin number you out, but arsenic agelong arsenic you person content successful yourself, you're susceptible of anything. And that cipher is invincible."

Both takeaways came successful useful for Peña years aboriginal erstwhile she was preparing to situation Nunes. The infinitesimal her rear-naked choke vanquished the champ, the stunned assemblage went eerily quiet, and Peña learned thing other astir herself.

"I find the dependable of soundlessness beautiful," she said. "When you're an underdog, it's conscionable an accidental to soundlessness everybody who doubted you. There's thing better." When Peña steps into the cage with Harrison this weekend, she volition beryllium seeking to soundlessness her doubters erstwhile more. As of Wednesday, Peña is simply a +500 underdog, per ESPN BET. Can she apical immoderate of the notable UFC shockers of the past? Here's 1 observer's ranking of the astir impactful rubric combat upsets.

The closing likelihood listed beneath were sourced from ESPN's UFC database.

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Valentina Shevchenko wins backmost women's UFC flyweight rubric astatine UFC 306

Valentina Shevchenko defeats Alexa Grasso successful the co-main lawsuit of UFC 306 to summation backmost her women's UFC flyweight title.

10. Alexa Grasso (+600) defeats Valentina Shevchenko by fourth-round submission

UFC 285, March 4, 2023

During her 4 years arsenic women's flyweight champion and adjacent before, Shevchenko had fixed fans crushed to judge she was invincible successful fights against specified mortals. The lone 2 losses successful her 14-fight UFC vocation to that constituent had travel against Nunes, and they'd happened up successful the GOAT's 135-pound value class, not down successful Shevchenko's 125-pound class. Among Shevchenko's astir fight-deciding weapons had ever been her kicks, and connected this nighttime she unleashed 1 that fundamentally ended the bout -- and her rubric reign. Late successful Round 4 of a combat she was winning connected the scorecards, Shevchenko spun for a assemblage footwear but it missed, leaving her backmost exposed. Grasso grabbed clasp and rapidly secured a rear-naked choke to propulsion disconnected the upset.

9. Amanda Nunes (+220) defeats Cris Cyborg by first-round knockout

UFC 232, Dec. 29, 2018

Cyborg was nary alien to speedy finishes. To this constituent successful her career, fractional of her victories had ended successful Round 1. She was a one-woman wrecking crew. But connected this night, she was the 1 getting wrecked ... and quickly. The 2 champions -- Cyborg astatine featherweight, Nunes astatine bantamweight -- some came retired swinging, and the faster Nunes repeatedly bushed her bigger hostile to the punch. One knockdown. Two. Three. Four. It was implicit successful 51 seconds, making Nunes 1 of conscionable 4 UFC fighters to beryllium a champ successful 2 divisions simultaneously.

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Flashback: Michael Bisping wins middleweight golden with KO of Luke Rockhold

Turn backmost the timepiece to UFC 199 erstwhile Michael Bisping shocked the MMA satellite and bushed Luke Rockhold successful Round 1 to triumph UFC gold.

8. Michael Bisping (+400) defeats Luke Rockhold by first-round KO

UFC 199, June 4, 2016 (watch the combat connected ESPN+)

Just 18 months earlier this fight, Rockhold had indignantly finished Bisping with a guillotine choke -- using conscionable 1 arm. No 1 was begging to spot much of that, but determination the UFC was, 10 days earlier a pay-per-view main lawsuit and successful request of a replacement hostile for then-UFC middleweight champion Rockhold aft erstwhile champion Chris Weidman was forced retired due to the fact that of injury. The telephone went retired to Bisping. Did Rockhold instrumentality him lightly successful the rematch? The champ held his hands defiantly debased and looked lethargic from commencement to finish. And what a brutal decorativeness it was, with Bisping clipping his bitter rival with a near hook and gleefully finishing him connected the canvas.

7. Frankie Edgar (+620) defeats BJ Penn by unanimous decision

UFC 112, April 10, 2010

There was a clip erstwhile Penn was wide considered the golden modular of MMA. A two-division UFC champion, helium had made a vocation of warring bigger men, including champions Georges St-Pierre, Matt Hughes and Lyoto Machida. Edgar, connected the different hand, lacked that aureate pedigree and was tiny for a lightweight, but helium established himself arsenic the small motor that could against Penn. He outworked "The Prodigy" connected his mode to a unanimous decision, though the combat was truthful adjacent that the UFC booked a rematch 4 months later. Edgar won that one, too, later penning for ESPN, "Going into the archetypal fight, I believed I could bushed BJ. I didn't know, but I believed. Going into the 2nd fight, I knew I could. I deliberation that's wherefore the spread betwixt america was a batch bigger the 2nd time."

6. Henry Cejudo (+400) defeats Demetrious Johnson by divided decision

UFC 227, Aug. 4, 2018 (watch the combat connected ESPN+)

"Mighty Mouse" had won 13 fights successful a row, including a grounds 11 defenses of the men's flyweight title, going into his rematch with Cejudo, whom helium knocked retired successful the archetypal circular 2 years earlier. So this turnaround was a shocker. It mightiness person appeared higher successful these rankings if the combat hadn't been scored a divided determination that galore observers thought should person gone Johnson's way. Instead, the triumph acceptable Cejudo connected a way toward glory, arsenic successful the uncommon and coveted champ-champ status.

5. Julianna Peña (+650) defeats Amanda Nunes by second-round submission

UFC 269, Dec. 11, 2021

Yes, "The Venezuelan Vixen" deserves a spot among the apical 5 of rubric combat upsets. She bushed the GOAT astatine a clip erstwhile Nunes was champion of 2 value classes and had won 12 fights successful a row. Peña entered the combat conscionable 10-4 arsenic a pro and 2-2 successful her astir caller 4 bouts. Where was her way to victory? No 1 could find 1 -- but Peña herself. "I person a ultimate content successful myself, due to the fact that I cognize however overmuch passionateness and dedication I person for this sport," she said. "Me beating Amanda that nighttime conscionable came down to axenic content and hard work."

4. Chris Weidman (+200) defeats Anderson Silva by second-round KO

UFC 162, July 6, 2013 (watch the combat connected ESPN+)

Silva had owned the middleweight title for 7 years -- a UFC-record reign of 2,457 days. Along with making 10 rubric defenses, helium had adjacent taken respective bouts astatine airy heavyweight, extending his winning streak to 16 successful a row, the astir consecutive victories successful UFC history. "The Spider" was not simply beating everyone, helium was making them look similar fools. Silva toyed with Weidman, too, aboriginal successful this fight. But the challenger was undeterred. He kept moving forward, adjacent arsenic Silva evaded everything helium threw. When Weidman missed with a close manus aboriginal successful the 2nd circular and swiped his fist backmost toward the champ's head, it threw disconnected Silva's timing for a divided 2nd -- conscionable agelong capable for a follow-up near manus to driblet Silva and nonstop shockwaves done the sport.

3. Matt Serra (+850) defeats Georges St-Pierre by first-round TKO

UFC 69, April 7, 2007

This 1 is often cited arsenic the biggest rubric combat upset successful UFC history. That makes consciousness connected the look of it -- GSP, a starring campaigner for GOAT status, losing to a world TV amusement contestant. But Serra's play of "The Ultimate Fighter" featured a formed of fighters with UFC experience. Serra had made 9 erstwhile Octagon appearances, including going the region against Penn, a erstwhile champion. And St-Pierre, making his archetypal defence of the welterweight title, had not yet established his supremacy. Having said each that, this inactive was a shocking result, particularly considering however easy St-Pierre had handled Hughes to triumph the rubric 5 months earlier. Going into the combat with Serra, it appeared that a caller epoch was dawning. Then, a looping close manus by Serra sent the champ crumbling, on with immoderate expectations.

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McGregor: 'I did accidental the close manus would beryllium his downfall'

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor joins SportsCenter to interruption down his 13-second knockout triumph implicit Jose Aldo astatine UFC 194 and if he'd beryllium consenting to springiness Aldo a rematch.

2. Conor McGregor (+100) defeats. José Aldo by first-round KO

UFC 194, Dec. 12, 2015 (watch the combat connected ESPN+)

Numerically, this 1 doesn't measurement up to the different presumed mismatches connected this list, but canonically it represented a large turning constituent successful the sport's trajectory. McGregor really opened arsenic a flimsy favourite astatine immoderate sportsbooks. Oddsmakers intelligibly were swayed by the personage popularity of McGregor and their knowing that immoderate devotees would laic down wealth connected the Irishman contempt him ne'er having been successful the cage with anyone adjacent adjacent successful stature to Aldo, victor of 18 successful a row. McGregor talked a bully game, and that was capable for some.

The grounds shows that McGregor bushed Aldo successful 13 seconds. But helium really won the combat good earlier that. McGregor taunted the champ adjacent earlier they were booked to fight, and the caput games lone ramped up arsenic the combat got closer. During a prefight quality conference, McGregor grabbed the loop from the dais and held it high, arsenic if it were his. By combat night, Aldo was livid. He came retired of his country with uncharacteristic aggression, and successful the precise archetypal exchange, McGregor cracked the champ with a counterpunch that sent Aldo crashing to the canvas and McGregor's prima powerfulness skyrocketing. That punch, and what led to it, changed MMA forever.

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Holm's KO of Rousey shocked the world

Holly Holm shocked the satellite by knocking retired Ronda Rousey astatine UFC 193 successful beforehand of implicit 56,000 radical successful Melbourne. Order UFC 243 present https://plus.espn.com/ufc/ppv.

1. Holly Holm (+870) defeats Ronda Rousey by second-round KO

UFC 193, Nov. 14, 2015 (watch the combat connected ESPN+)

This was the upset to upstage each upsets, though MMA fans of caller vintage mightiness not presumption it arsenic specified an tremendous shocker. Looking backmost now, a decennary later, 1 mightiness retrieve Rousey for getting smashed successful her last 2 fights earlier slinking disconnected into retirement. But anterior to that, she was the sport's astir ascendant combatant -- by far. "Rowdy Ronda" entered the Holm combat astatine 12-0 with 12 finishes, each but 1 of them coming successful the archetypal round. Rousey's 3 fights erstwhile to the Holm bout had ended successful 16, 14 and 34 seconds. No 1 could bent with her.

Then, earlier a assemblage of 56,214 astatine an Australian rules shot stadium successful Melbourne, Rousey ran into Holm. She mostly ran into Holm's near fist, again and again. It was stunning to ticker the combat not instantly spell to the mat, similar each erstwhile Rousey fights had. It was stunning to spot the champion's look redden and her tone dissipate. It was stunning to spot Holm's caput footwear successful the opening infinitesimal of Round 2 nonstop Rousey and her aura of invincibility crashing to the canvas.