UFC 266: Valentina Shevchenko tells Khabib Nurmagomedov ‘no one has the right’ to call ring girls ‘useless’
- UFC flyweight champ hits back at ‘The Eagle’ for his criticism, making a point to celebrate with ring girls after TKO win vs Lauren Murphy
- ‘Beautiful women, it’s a decoration of any event. And I want people to know that,’ Shevchenko says
After a sixth successful defence of her flyweight title at UFC 266, Valentina Shevchenko made a point to go and celebrate with the ring girls on her way out of the Octagon.
The ring girls looked surprised to be embraced by the Peruvian-Kyrgyzstani “Bullet” after her fourth-round TKO of American challenger Lauren Murphy at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
It was all part of the 33-year-old Shevchenko’s plan to show some support for them following critical comments by retired former UFC lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The Dagestan-native had said in a recent interview that ring girls are “useless” and their inclusion in mixed martial arts is “a mistake”.
Nurmagomedov’s words drew a fired-up response from Shevchenko at her post-fight press conference on Saturday night.
“Beautiful women, it’s a decoration of any event,” she said. “And I want people to know that, and no one has the right to say they are useless, because they are on the place where they have to be.