Natalia Silva has made her intentions clear heading into Saturday's UFC 324 fight against Rose Namajunas. The Brazilian contender believes she can defeat flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko in every facet of mixed martial arts, and a victory this weekend would put her in position to prove it.
Speaking at the UFC 324 pre-fight press conference at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Silva expressed supreme confidence in her ability to dethrone Shevchenko, who reclaimed the flyweight title in September 2024 and has since defended it twice. The 27-year-old from Brazil stated her case with conviction.
Natalia Silva Eyes Valentina Shevchenko After Rose Namajunas Showdown at UFC 324
"Valentina definitely is not going to beat me in any area," Silva said. "I train every day to be champion and it doesn't matter if the fight is on the feet or on the ground – I am ready to beat her. I work every day in every area possible. If it's striking, I'm going to beat her. If it's any sort of grappling, I'm going to beat her and I'm going to be champion. In the name of Jesus, yes – I am training for that and I believe that a victory over Rose already puts a belt on this table within the next 12 months".
Silva's path to a title shot has already encountered delays. The Team Borracha fighter revealed that she expected to challenge Shevchenko sooner, but the UFC needed the champion to recover from her dominant November victory over Zhang Weili at UFC 322. That five-round shutout saw Shevchenko score 50-45 on all three judges' scorecards.
"I wanted to have fought for the title already, but the UFC said Valentina would not be available to fight now and that they needed me to take another fight," Silva explained. "They offered Rose's name and we accepted. I believe that if Zhang Weili hadn't fought Valentina, I would already have fought for the belt. For everything I've done in the organization, I think the person who was most ready for this opportunity was me. I believe that, yes. And a win over Rose already credentials me for a title shot. The UFC told me this fight is an eliminator and that the next one will be for the title".
Natalia Silva vs. Rose Namajunas at UFC 324
Silva stepped into the UFC 324 matchup on short notice after former champion Alexa Grasso withdrew due to injury in early December. The Brazilian had most recently defeated Grasso by unanimous decision at UFC 315 in May 2025, extending her winning streak to 13 fights and maintaining her perfect 7-0 UFC record.
Namajunas, a former two-time strawweight champion, moved up to flyweight in 2023 and holds a 3-2 record at 125 pounds. The 33-year-old last competed in June when she defeated Miranda Maverick by unanimous decision. The UFC has informed Namajunas that a victory over Silva would earn her a flyweight title shot against Shevchenko, setting up a clash between friends and training partners.
When discussing Namajunas, Silva acknowledged her opponent's adaptability but expressed confidence in dictating the pace of their encounter. The Brazilian noted Namajunas recently announced a return to her taekwondo roots in preparation for facing Silva's striking style.
"I don't have much to say about her; I have a lot to say about myself," Silva stated. "Rose adapts a lot to the style of whoever she's fighting. The difficult part will be for her to adapt to my game. When I go in there to fight, I will be the one dictating the cards. She said she had to go back to her taekwondo roots because of my style. I never had to 'go back' to my roots – I always trained taekwondo. It's good that she went back, but I don't think the time she's had will be enough".
Silva began training taekwondo at age 16. Since her last defeat in December 2017 to Marina Rodriguez, Silva has won 13 consecutive fights.
Shevchenko, now 37, has not yet announced her next opponent following her victories over Manon Fiorot and Zhang Weili in 2025. The champion holds a 26-4-1 career record and sits at the top of the UFC women's pound-for-pound rankings.