UFC 255: Valentina Shevchenko’s domination continues as sisters shine, with Jessica Andrade next up for flyweight champ
- UFC’s flyweight queen has a brief scare but raises her game to dominate Brazilian challenger Jennifer Maia
- Dana White looking to book Shevchenko vs former strawweight champ Jessica Andrade next – ‘she needs an opponent people think can beat her’
There were a few scares for Valentina Shevchenko – and a fleeting thought that she might just be human after all – but once the flyweight queen found space and range she was all over Jennifer Maia at UFC 255 on Saturday night, defending her title via a unanimous decision in Las Vegas.
“I knew that Jennifer won’t be an easy opponent. I have watched her fights, and saw what she is. She’s never giving up. So I knew it would be a good fight for the belt,” said the woman who likes to be known as “Bullet.”
The win made it title defence number four for the Kyrgyzstan-born 32-year-old (20-3) and once again Shevchenko’s incredible ability to spot danger, and to adapt, was there for the world to see.
Maia was brave, and had her moments, but the Brazilian was outthought before she was outfought. Shevchenko threw her normal stand-up routine out the window, taking her opponent down five times, and doing plenty of damage when she did.
The elder Shevchenko sister – Antonina – had earlier scored a TKO win and Valentina revealed their mother Elena had over the past week won a Muay Thai shadow boxing title in the past week.