Valentina Shevchenko next fight: 3 possible opponents for the UFC champion?
The UFC women's flyweight champion is currently waiting for her next fight to be announced, with nothing scheduled for Valentina Shevchenko as of now. This leaves many fans speculating at who the dominant champion will be facing on her return to the octagon.
So, let's take a look at three possible opponents for the women's flyweight champion.
In her latest outing, Shevchenko was pushed much further than many would have imagined, against Taila Santos. The Brazilian had some great moments in the bout and only narrowly lost via split decision.
Meaning, a rematch between the two female fighters would make perfect sense and likely carry a lot of hype given the judges being split in their last meeting.
Watch the judge's decision and Shevchenko interview here:
Another possible rematch for Valentina Shevchenko could be Lauren Murphy. The American recently scored an impressive result against legendary female fighter Miesha Tate at UFC on ABC 3 earlier this month.
Murphy was largely dominant throughout the bout, which showed on the judge's scorecards, winning via unanimous decision after three rounds.
However, Shevchenko has already fought and beaten Murphy, so if the UFC champion is looking for some new blood, she could turn her attention to an upcoming bout in her division next month.
Viviane Araujo will take on Alexa Grasso next month, which would seem like a perfect bout for Valentina Shevchenko to scout her next opponent. The UFC champion hasn't fought either of these flyweights and both are ranked 6th (Araujo) and 5th (Grasso) in the flyweight rankings.
It would seemingly make perfect sense for Shevchenko to face the winner of this bout if the champion is looking to face a new opponent when defending her belt once again in the UFC.
What is Valentina Shevchenko's record within the UFC?
As mentioned, Valentina Shevchenko is a dominant UFC women's flyweight champion and has amassed an organizational record of 12 wins and just 2 losses in the UFC.
Both of her defeats came against Amanda Nunes and took place in the women's bantamweight division. As a flyweight, Shevchenko is currently unbeaten in the UFC and has rarely been tested during her bouts.
Her latest bout against Taila Santos was probably her toughest title defense since becoming champion, with many of Shevchenko's bouts finishing early. Santos managed to push the champion to the judges and only lost via a split decision.