Kayla Harrison is “selfishly” hoping her former teammate Amanda Nunes comes out of retirement

Much like she dominated the Olympics en route to two gold medals, Kayla Harrison has long dreamed of being considered the absolute best in the world when it comes to her fighting career.

Harrison doesn't just want to win championships, she wants to retire as the greatest female fighter in the history of the sport, and she knows there are still many hurdles to overcome before she can earn that distinction. Perhaps the quickest route to her goal would be winning a UFC title and then seeing former champion Amanda Nunes return to competition after “The Lioness” hinted at a possible return from retirement. Nunes ended her career in 2023, retiring with UFC bantamweight and featherweight titles.

While they were once teammates under the same coaches at American Top Team in Florida, Harrison knows that a win against Nunes would be a great credit to her record and that she is happy to accept the challenge.

“Selfishly, I hope she comes back,” Harrison told MMA Fighting. “I have nothing to do with Amanda other than her trying to put pressure on American Top Team. Don't fuck with my buddies.

“But listen, if she’s happy and living her dream, that’s great but selfish. I would love for her to come back so I can put an end to all this noise.”

In her last two fights in the UFC, Nunes avenged an earlier loss to Julianna Peña and regained her bantamweight title. She then brutally defeated Irene Aldana, which ultimately meant Nunes' last appearance with promotion.

The Peña rematch came seven months after Nunes' surprising loss to the “Venezuelan Vixen.” Nunes relinquished her UFC title after being submitted via rear-naked choke in the second round. This was the first time in six years that Nunes suffered a defeat. Things went very differently in the second fight, as Nunes brutally punished Peña for five rounds before winning a lopsided decision, with one judge giving Nunes a score of 50-43.

In the long run, Harrison hopes she gets the chance to beat both of them, but she admits that while Peña deserves credit for her win, she still believes Nunes is the better fighter and the greater asset to her resume.

“I will never take this victory away from Julianna again,” Harrison said. “It was her night. Kudos to her. Lightning rarely strikes the same place twice. I think Amanda is the better fighter and who knows what happened. I’m excited to see what Julianna looks like in this fight (against Raquel Pennington) – if she makes it to the fight.”

While Harrison has big plans for her future, none of that will happen if she makes a mistake in her next fight against Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307. That's why any conversation about the title, Nunes or anyone else ends with Harrison once again bringing up Vieira's name as the only one that matters at the moment.

“We’ll see what happens,” Harrison said. “I’m focused on Ketlen Vieira, October 5, UFC 307, 135 pounds, one step closer to the finish.

“Step by step. First Ketlen, then the title and then Amanda if she wants some.”