Valentina Shevchenko's dominance doesn't translate to popularity, claims Chael Sonnen
Valentina Shevchenko is currently the longest active reigning UFC champion, as every other belt in every other weight class has changed hands since she won the women's flyweight title at UFC 231. Despite defending her belt seven times, Shevchenko is yet to compete in the main event of a pay-per-view card. Former UFC fighter-turned-analyst Chael Sonnen speculated on why she has not achieved popularity despite her dominance.
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Speaking on his podcast, Beyond the Fight, the mixed martial arts analyst stated:
"Shevchenko is everything, but a draw. Shevchenko is the most dominant fighter in the sport... She's also a co-main event and she's not in high demand as a co-main event. Not only do you have the most dominant fighter, a champion of the world, who can not headline a card, you can not count her. People are not going to come out. You're not guaranteed to do well in a co-spot and that's not an insult to her."
Chael Sonnen added more details on how Shevchenko's dominance has not translated into stardom:
"She did an interview, and she talked about her inactivity. She talked about how much that frustrated her. She said that she's had two fights in the last year, I did not know that. Did you guys know that? The greatest and most dominant fighter in the world did not have a full schedule last year and none of us knew that. That's not good."
Shevchenko competed just once in 2022, marking the first time she has done so since joining the UFC in 2015. She has been inactive since defeating Talia Santos by a split decision at UFC 275 and does not currently have an opponent lined up for her next title defense.
Watch Chael Sonnen discuss Valentina Shevchenko's lack of stardom below (starting at the 1:20 mark):
Valentina Shevchenko calls out women's flyweight division for being "quiet"
UFC champions generally have to deal with multiple fighters calling them out in their respective divisions. That has not been the case with Valentina Shevchenko. This has led the UFC women's flyweight champion to express her frustration with the division, and while speaking with Spencer Kyte of UFC.com, Shevchenko stated:
"I wanted to fight in December, but it’s my understanding that it was hard to find an opponent... I’ve been ready since I don’t know, since September? If they call me tomorrow, I’m ready tomorrow. I want to fight frequently, but I realize this is a problem for the UFC to find opponents in order for me to fight frequently. My understanding is that everyone would love to fight for a title, so what’s happening with you girls? Why so quiet?"
Valentina Shevchenko will look to defend her title for the eighth time in 2023. It remains unclear who she will face when she returns to the octagon.