The dominance of Valentina Shevchenko has made the UFC Women's Flyweight Division less exciting (Opinion)
Unbeaten 'Bullet' Valentina Shevchenko?
When MMA fighters are competing in the UFC they are going against the very best this world has to offer. Over the years, we have seen many dominant champions who have defeated opponents from multiple generations. Georges St Pierre, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Jon Jones, and Amanda Nunes are some of those dominant unbeaten champions.
However, when champions become too dominant they separate themselves from the rest of the competition. We have seen this with arguably the greatest fighter of all time, Demetrious Johnson. Fans think of Demetrious Johnson's flyweight title reign less eventful because his skillsets were levels above the contenders. It's hard for fans to watch a fight when they already know who is going to get his hands raised. And that's what happened with the UFC flyweight division.
However, after the cringe era of Henry Cejudo and the crowning moment of Deiveson Figueiredo, the flyweight division has become more exciting than ever before. The knockout power of Deiveson Figueiredo is unmatched in the flyweight division. As if that was not enough to make the division exciting, Cody Garbrandt is now moving down to get a crack at Figueiredo's title.
The UFC flyweight division and light heavyweight division have become exciting after the recent turn of events. However, the UFC women's flyweight division is struggling to capture the attention of the masses.
Can anyone beat the UFC Women's Flyweight Champion, Valentina Shevchenko?
The UFC Women's Flyweight Champion, Valentina Shevchenko has dominated every single opponent she has faced at 125 lbs. The former strawweight queen, Joanna Jedrzejczyk moved up to challenge Valentina Shevchenko. However, 'Bullet' won that fight without much trouble.
It's very unlikely that the current top flyweight contenders will be able to beat Valentina Shevchenko. Jeniffer Maia and Cynthia Calvillo might cause some trouble for Shevchenko if the fight goes to the ground. However, will that be enough to dethrone the long-reigning flyweight queen and bring back some excitement to the division?
The only fighter who has wins over Shevchenko in UFC is the two-division champion, Amanda Nunes. And it's not likely that Nunes will be dropping down to flyweight to challenge Shevchenko. Then who else is there to push Valentina Shevchenko to the limit in the flyweight division?
The strawweight champion, Zhang Weili can move up to face Valentina Shevchenko, which will be a massive fight. However, Zhang Weili has business to take care of in the strawweight division as top contenders such as Rose Namajunas and Joanna Jedrzejczyk are looking to reclaim the strawweight throne again.
With not much going around in the division, it is safe to say that women's flyweight division is the least exciting in UFC. It will take a sensational performance from a flyweight contender to dethrone UFC champion Valentina Shevchenko.