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Kayla Harrison has mixed feelings about her next opponent, UFC bantamweight champion Julianna Peña.

UFC 316 will be a 135-pound showcase with each division's titles on the line June 7 in Newark, New Jersey. Before Sean O'Malley looks to reclaim his crown against his successor Merab Dvalishvili in the headliner, Harrison will attempt to dethrone Peña in the co-main event. The pair have had brief interactions so far, dating back to UFC 307 in October 2024, when both women came up with big wins. Their verbal sparring at that event's heated pre-fight press conference was just a glimpse of what's to come.

Harrison spoke Monday on Uncrowned's "The Ariel Helwani Show" about her feelings toward Peña, and explained why it's difficult for the two-time Olympic gold medalist to like the champ.

"We'll see [how tough she is]," Harrison said. "There's always that little bit of unknown when you fight a new opponent. I don't think skill-wise she's the top of the top, but I think in terms of maybe heart and experience, she's got some good experience, and she's definitely got confidence. I would argue cockiness, maybe.

"I want to have a lot of respect for Julianna because she's a single mom, a veteran of the sport, she scratched and clawed her way to the top, she believed in herself when nobody believed in her. I really want to have admiration for her, and I think deep down, I do. And I love that she's confident and she says what she thinks. But she's just pretty dumb sometimes, so it's hard. It's difficult. Just some of the stuff, cheesy, very cringe. She reminds me a lot of Henry [Cejudo]. Trying too hard."

The timing of Harrison's big UFC title fight announcement arrived just as Harrison was starting to get antsy for her third bout in the Octagon. Ideally, the two-time PFL lightweight champion hoped to get the fight this Saturday at UFC 314 in Miami. She'll instead head to Newark in June, with intentions of further establishing her eventual case as the greatest female fighter of all time.

Harrison, 34, has made the most of her career opportunities through the Olympics and PFL before entering the UFC with a matchup against former champion Holly Holm. Harrison's move to the UFC looked like it could've happened sooner, had her former teammate and all-time great former champion Amanda Nunes not lost a 2021 encounter with Peña. 

Despite Nunes now being out of the picture after retiring in June 2023, Harrison still hopes the sight of herself as champion can lure back "The Lionness."

"The belt is the prize," Harrison said. "Win the belt, defend the belt. Hopefully, God willing, Amanda comes back. Fight Amanda, whoop up on her, give her an automatic rematch real quick just to make sure everybody understands it wasn't a fluke, and then I think it will be very hard to dispute me being the greatest of all time.

"I definitely have a game plan. The problem is I have to rely on other people for that game plan. So I also have to be OK if it never happens."

The friendship between Harrison and Nunes became strained as Harrison's success in MMA grew and she began to drop down from her original 155-pound weight class. Ultimately, Nunes left her longtime gym, American Top Team, before she finished her career. Despite the competitive nature of the situation, Harrison hopes her old friend doesn't believe things turned sour from a personal aspect.

"That's my dream to fight Amanda," Harrison said. "It's not a disrespectful thing. She's the greatest of all time. I have a lot of admiration and respect for her.

"I think that's what was so hard about her leaving the gym or feeling some type of way. I never meant it in a disrespectful way. To me, the greatest honor I can give you is to say, 'Hey, you're the best, and you have what I want. Let's go share the cage and bring out the absolute best and raise the bar of women's MMA to a whole new level. Let's bring out the best in each other. May the best woman win.' For me, it's all about honor and respect. The martial arts way. I hope she sees that and knows that and wants to dance."

Harrison said she hasn't been promised anything specific from the UFC regarding an attempt to bring back Nunes if she wins the title. The best she can hope for is that Nunes will show up for UFC 316, which Harrison would interpret as a potential sign of interest in a possible comeback for the legendary former champ.

First and foremost, though, everything starts with a win over Peña. Harrison will enter that bout with no shortage of confidence, she said, though she stressed that she's not ignoring Peña's strengths, such as they are.

"I think I'm just going to dominate," Harrison said. "Go out there and instill my will. I think she's going to try and pressure, and like maybe — she's nuts, I'll give her that. She's got heart and she's nuts. She'll just keep coming forward. And I think that I'm going to fight a smart fight and whoop her ass."

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