Kayla Harrison makes the first defense of her bantamweight title against Amanda Nunes. The fight headlines UFC 334 on November 14 at Madison Square Garden.
A Title Fight Headlining Madison Square Garden
UFC 334 stacks two championship fights on November 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York, marking the promotion’s return to the arena. Heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane headlines by defending his title against American Josh Hokit. Gane became undisputed champion after Tom Aspinall vacated the belt with an eye injury, having already won the interim title by knocking out Alex Pereira at UFC Freedom 250. Aspinall, still recovering from an eye injury suffered against Gane at UFC 321, reinjured it in training before giving up the belt. Hokit, who signed with the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series in August 2025, has won four straight fights since that November, including a stoppage of Derrick Lewis and a win over Curtis Blaydes that earned him two bonuses in one night at UFC 327. Right behind that fight, bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison makes the first defense of her title against Amanda Nunes, back after more than three years away. The event is officially billed as Polymarket UFC 334: Gane vs. Hokit and airs on Paramount+, with the main card starting at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT), 2 a.m. in the United Kingdom and 3 a.m. in Central Europe on November 15.
A Fight Delayed Twice
The bout was first booked for UFC 324 on January 24, 2026, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Harrison withdrew after neck surgery performed in early January to repair multiple herniated discs. Doctors told her she needed at least six months of rehabilitation before returning to competition. At the time, reports said the fight would be rebooked later in 2026, with no date set. Ten months later, she says she is back to full fitness, summing up the moment simply: “This is it.”
Harrison’s Path From Olympic Judo to UFC Gold
A two-time Olympic judo gold medalist, Harrison was long considered the best woman competing outside the UFC before she signed. She debuted in the promotion at UFC 300 by submitting Holly Holm. A win over Ketlen Vieira six months later earned her a title shot. She won the bantamweight title on June 7, 2025, at UFC 316 in Newark, submitting Julianna Peña. Against Nunes, she makes the first defense of that belt, with a chance to claim the status she openly wants: “I want to be the GOAT.” On the fight itself, she said: “Iron sharpens iron, and this is a fight that I have dreamed of since I began MMA.”
Nunes Returns as a Former Two Division Champion
At 38, Amanda Nunes, from Pojuca in Bahia, Brazil, left competition in June 2023 after a unanimous decision win over Irene Aldana at UFC 289, giving up her bantamweight belt at the time. She is the only woman to have held two UFC titles at once, winning the bantamweight and featherweight belts by knockout over Ronda Rousey and Cris Cyborg. She also holds the promotion’s women’s records for title fight wins (11), finishes (10) and consecutive wins (12). Inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame at a Las Vegas ceremony in June, she had not fought in more than three years before this bout. She has already beaten every other woman to hold the UFC bantamweight title, and only Harrison has eluded her. On coming back to defend a belt that is no longer hers, she said plainly: “You’ve got to defend the belt. And then we’re going to see.”
Former Training Partners Turned Rivals
Harrison and Nunes once trained together at American Top Team before Nunes left the gym. Harrison described her opponent as naturally gifted on the feet, calling herself more of a workhorse who grinds out fights. She added, “I’m American Top Team till the day I die.” Nunes told the show Deep Waters she would have returned to competition regardless, saying, “I enjoy more to be there.” She said she plans to defend the belt again if she beats Harrison.
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