UFC 261: Jessica Andrade plans third-round finish vs Valentina Shevchenko; eyes ‘champ-champ’ status
- ‘When you take the space away from her I feel she gets a little bit lost,’ Andrade says of UFC flyweight champ
- ‘Who knows, when I beat Valentina [maybe] I’m able to have a rematch or fight the new champion at strawweight’
Former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade has no easy task in overcoming the seemingly unstoppable Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 261 on April 24.
The Kyrgyzstani flyweight champ (20-3) is on a six-fight win streak, sweeping all challengers before her, and Andrade (21-8) enters the contest as a decent underdog at +310 odds after moving up and finishing former challenger Katlyn Chookagian last October.
But the 29-year-old Brazilian is aiming to apply the pressure en route to a third-round finish in front of a sold-out crowd in Jacksonville, Florida.
“I wanted this challenge when I was strawweight champion but the first time I defended my belt I ended up losing and I thought this opportunity of fighting Valentina one day was maybe lost,” Andrade told SCMP MMA.
“I’m best when I’m the underdog. When people don’t believe in me or think my opponent is better, they don’t expect what I can do and I have the opportunity of surprising them. And I think that’s what motivates me the most.
“I believe what will work best for me is not giving her space,” she said. “Lots of people underestimate [Shevchenko] and then she can show all her skills and counter-attacks. When you take the space away from her I feel she gets a little bit lost, she loses her kicks and her spinning techniques.