There may be a new contender in the UFC Women's Bantamweight Division and she's not even in the division. No. 4 ranked flyweight Erin Blanchfield has been soaring to the top of the rankings with dominant finish after finish, but now she's eyeing a separate challenge at the higher weight class. In an interview with MMAFighting, Blanchfield talked about her prospects of challenging for the vacant Bantamweight strap. Follow our UFC news for more fight announcements and breaking content!

The Women's Bantamweight Championship became vacant once Amanda Nunes retired following her win over Irene Aldana at UFC 289. No. 1 contender Julianna Pena was vocal in her distaste for Nunes' retirement as the two were slated to face off for their trilogy bout. Now, with Pena waiting in the wings, the UFC must fight a worthy opponent to challenge her for the belt.

This is were Erin Blanchfield comes in. While she could easily contend for a belt at 125 in the future, the 24-year old believes she has a shot to capitalize on the vacancy at 135. Blanchfield told Damon Martin, “I think a lot of people are curious when I'm going to be fighting next. I don't have anything lined up right now. I know [Pena] wants to fight and get her title back, but I feel like I'm one of the most interesting fights right now for that division and for that title. I think it would get a lot of eyes on it and that's something I'd definitely be interested in”

When asked about the move to 135, Blanchfield feels confident and believes she could be a breath of fresh air for a division vastly ruled by Nunes. “People will be interested to see that fight, and it could be on a PPV card, main, or co-main. It will definitely get a lot more eyes on it than a lot of the girls that have already been seen.”

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Blanchfield makes a great point as women's bantamweight has seen a carousel of the top-5 contenders all fighting each other and eventually falling to Nunes. Blanchfield is 11-1 in her career and a perfect 5-0 in the UFC octagon. She's currently got a streak of three-straight submission wins including one over Molly McCann and most recently, Jessica Andrade. Blanchfield certainly looks like the next best thing in women's MMA and it's unquestionable that the UFC should be putting her in big spots.

As for Pena, she has yet to issue a response. We should see some gears turning this week as Dana White and the boys head to the war room to discuss the upcoming Fall season of fights. What do you think – do you want to see Erin Blanchfield fight for the title?