Breaking down Pannie Kianzad’s bantamweight division: Who’s most likely to fight for the vacant title?

Raquel Pennington

Photo via Instagram (@raquel_pennington)

• Record: 15-8
• Next fight: Not known

Raquel Pennington is riding a five-fight winning streak and was scheduled to rematch Irene Aldana on May 20. When Aldana took the UFC 289 title bout on short-notice, due to Julianna Pena’s injury, Pennington served as a backup for the fight.

A possible scenario is that UFC books Pennington against former champion Pena for the vacant bantamweight strap, both due to her rankings and her willingness to be the backup for UFC 289.