Sports
WATCH: Michael Chiesa Overwhelmed With Emotion as He Embraces Teammate Julianna Peña After Title Win
When Julianna Peña won the UFC women’s bantamweight title, there was no one happier than Michael Chiesa. ‘Maverick’ Chiesa and Peña are both teammates at Sikjitsu and have been friends for years. They also started out with their MMA journey at roughly the same time. No doubt Chiesa was rooting for Peña to win.
‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ defeating Amanda Nunes was something many did not see coming. It was a shock for the spectators. However, Peña was confident and delivered what she promised. Likewise, ‘Maverick’ too believed in her skills and absolutely wanted to see her hold the belt.
ABSOLUTE CHAOS AND FANFARE AFTER PEÑA WON #UFC269 pic.twitter.com/e0dNAdKBkn
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 12, 2021
Seeing her win made him so happy that jumped the rail. He tried to further jump into the octagon but hurt himself badly in the process. When Chiesa met Peña backstage, he engulfed her in a huge hug and couldn’t stop the tears in his eyes from flowing.
Chiesa was later heard saying, “… she’s gonna pull this off. It’s not some, some rabbit out of the hat type of thing. I’m just very proud of her and I couldn’t be any more happy for her… I started this journey at the same time as she did. I’m just very proud of her. I’m very proud of her. She’s an amazing woman, she’s an amazing fighter, very proud of her.”
As the welterweight was experiencing so many emotions after Peña’s win, he had to take a few deep breaths to calm himself down. Seeing Pena win may provide Chiesa the push he needs to rise at 170 and secure his own title win.
What’s next for Michael Chiesa?
Michael Chiesa is currently ranked as #10 UFC welterweight fighter. He has been in a total of three fights in 2021. Although he lost the last two fights against Vicente Luque and Sean Brady, ‘Maverick’ still remains a tough fighter in the division.
There are several great opponents for him in the division. However, after two back-to-back losses, it might be important for Chiesa to sign the dotted line against someone he would back himself to beat stylistically.
Or, he could ride on the high of his teammate’s win and put on a virtuoso performance against the likes of Khamzat Chimaev, Stephen Thompson, who are near him in the rankings.
Watch this story: The Best Knockouts of 2021 in the UFC featuring Kamaru Usman, Rose Namajunas, and more
What do you think about Michael Chiesa’s endless support for Julianna Peña? Let us know in the comments.
The post WATCH: Michael Chiesa Overwhelmed With Emotion as He Embraces Teammate Julianna Peña After Title Win appeared first on EssentiallySports.
