UFC Women’s Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko was shocked to be on the wrong side of so many predictions from fellow fighters prior to her victory inside the Sphere earlier this month.
Shevchenko began her second reign on the 125-pound throne at the UFC 306 (Noche UFC) pay-per-view event in Las Vegas on September 14, where she finally got the better of Alexa Grasso at the third time of asking.
Having previously been submitted by the Mexican to lose the belt and failed to regain it in a split draw, “Bullet” turned to her smothering wrestling game to get the job done in lopsided fashion when the pair completed their trilogy.
The way the bout played out was a stark contrast to what most had expected, with some branding it among the toughest championship fights to predict so far this year in the lead-up.
That view left plenty edging to the side of the defending champion ahead of UFC 306, which evidently left Shevchenko baffled…
Shevchenko Shocked To See UFC Peers Picking Against Her
During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Shevchenko took a moment to address the number of people — specifically other professional fighters — who had leant the way of Grasso in their pre-fight picks.
While the newly crowned champ would have expected such takes from the fanbase, she expressed surprise at how many of her UFC peers dismissed her chances of unseating the Mexican on fight night.
“Surprisingly for me, many UFC fighters, many pro fighters, when they had their picks before our third fight, they said, ‘Grasso…oh Grasso.’ It was kind of one-sided,” Shevchenko said. “It was a little bit surprising for me. I would take it from people who don’t know much about martial arts, and they just want to see (stupidity) in the striking, like (finding out) who has a stronger chin, a stronger head, and it doesn’t involve too much technique, too much fighter IQ, too much of the character of the fighter.
“I would take it from those people, but when pro fighters say that, it was like, ‘Oh my God. There’s something wrong with this world,'” Shevchenko continued. “That’s another reason I had to show domination. I had to show I’m superior in every field.”
Regardless, Shevchenko proved her doubters wrong inside the Sphere to commence a second rule of the flyweight division. She’ll now set her sights on adding another defense to her résumé, which will likely need to come at the expense of the charging Manon Fiorot.
