UFC 316 star claims teammate was “robbed” in recent title fight

Will another new champion be crowned this weekend at UFC 316?

(Zuffa LLC)

One of the biggest names competing at UFC 316 this weekend has offered a bold take on last month's UFC 315 main event.

Taking place at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, UFC 316 is topped by a bantamweight double feature with men’s titleholder Merab Dvalishvili set to rematch Sean O’Malley in the main event after Julianna Peña opens her second reign with the women’s belt against Kayla Harrison.

The stacked card kicks off what is currently a star-studded summer slate of events for the UFC, and fans are eager to see if either bantamweight title changes hands this weekend after one new champion was crowned at UFC 315 last month in Montreal.

READ MORE: Fighter that went to war with Sean O’Malley returns to UFC after 3 years away

Jack Della Maddalena (blue gloves) reacts after defeating Belal Muhammad (not pictured) for the Welterweight Title during UFC 315 at Bell Centre. / Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

Julianna Peña Claims Belal Muhammad Was "Robbed" At UFC 315

Valentina Shevchenko successfully kicked off her second reign as women’s flyweight champion at UFC 315 when she defeated Manon Fiorot, but in the night’s main event Belal Muhammad relinquished his title to Jack Della Maddalena when the Australian got his hand raised via unanimous decision.

A teammate of Muhammad’s, Peña was asked during UFC 316 media day if she’d given any advice to “Remember the Name” after the loss and made a surprising claim about how she had scored the fight (h/t Benny P).

Belal Muhammad (red gloves) fights Jack Della Maddalena (blue gloves) during UFC 315 at Bell Centre. / Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

“I didn’t think Belal lost, I watched that fight and I was like ‘Yeah, we got it.’ And he won,” Peña said. “And then when they called it for the other guy – you know, kudos to him, but I thought that Belal won. So, I didn’t really give him any pep talk except for the fact that, ‘I’m sorry my brother, you got robbed’.”

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Peña Aims To Beat The Odds At UFC 316

The bout between Muhammad and Della Maddalena took home “Fight of the Night” honors at UFC 315, and while the matchup was certainly competitive there were few fans arguing with the judges’ scorecards in the immediate aftermath of the event.

The judges' scorecards for Muhammad vs. Della Maddalena. / (Zuffa LLC)

Muhammad closed as a small favorite to defend his belt against Della Maddalena in Montreal. In terms of pre-fight odds, Peña faces a far stiffer test against Harrison this weekend as a massive betting underdog despite her status as defending champion.

Raquel Pennington (red gloves) fights Julianna Pena (blue gloves) in a women’s bantamweight title bout during UFC 307 at Delta Center. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

READ MORE: Dustin Poirier teases epic custom mouthpiece for UFC 318 retirement fight

“The Venezuelan Vixen” famously upset Amanda Nunes at UFC 269 to win the women’s bantamweight title before losing it in an immediate rematch, and after claiming the vacant belt against Raquel Pennington last October the 35-year-old will now try to beat the odds once again this weekend in New Jersey.

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