Outside Source
Alexa Grasso knows what it’s like to be on the outside looking in as a title hopeful.
So while her rematch with Valentina Shevchenko didn’t bring any closure to their rivalry, Grasso didn’t seem especially excited jumping right back into a trilogy with “Bullet” in her next Octagon appearance.
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“It’s an interesting question,” Grasso said at the UFC Fight Night 227 post-fight press conference. “I don’t like to stop the division. There’s a lot of girls fighting to have this opportunity like I did, so I don’t like to stop it.”
If the promotion wants Grasso to run it back with Shevchenko immediately, she won’t offer serious resistance. However, there are other worthy contenders at flyweight, with both Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot putting togething impressive runs in the division.
“It all depends on the UFC. If they want a trilogy, let’s do this,” Grasso said. “If not, I would like to give an opportunity for another girl. I know how it is to be fighting all the time, to wait for your spot, and I wouldn’t like to stop this division. But whatever the UFC says.”
Were it not for Mike Bell awarding Grasso a 10-8 fifth round on his scorecard, Shevchenko would have reclaimed the flyweight belt via split decision in the Noche UFC headliner at the T-Mobile Arena on Saturday night. Still, Grasso authored some of the fight’s most memorable moments, as she floored Shevchenko with a right hand in Round 2 and ended the fight attached to her opponent’s back. The Lobo Gym MMA export believes her efforts were worthy of a victory.
“I’m happy with my performance,” Grasso said. “For me it was 3-2 — the second, fourth, and fifth were for me — but I’m not the judge.”
The aforementioned knockdown was the first suffered by Shevchenko in her decorated UFC tenure. Grasso noticed that her rival, who landed four takedowns in the fight, began to rely more on wrestling and control after that moment.
“I was expecting that,” Grasso said. “I know I always do damage with my hands and it’s something I was expecting from her, so I was prepared. When you have a good punch, of course you have to change your strategy, and I knew that she changed.”
Grasso’s fourth-round submission victory against Shevchenko at UFC 285 will go down as one of the biggest upsets in promotion history, but her continued growth was even more evident in Saturday’s rematch, as she held her own against a determined opponent looking to avenge that defeat.
“The plan was the finish the fight, but I showed my power,” Grasso said. “I’ve been showing, every single fight, my evolution, everything I’ve been working, and I’m just happy with everything I did in that fight.”
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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