Outside Source
Valentina Shevchenko was in complete control against Weili Zhang. | Getty/UFC
After dominating a former champion from a weight class below her, Valentina Shevchenko is considering moving up a division.
“Bullet” was in complete control against ex-strawweight queen Weili Zhang at UFC 322, winning a lopsided five-round verdict to retain her 125-pound title at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night. While it was supposed to be a highly-anticipated clash between the sport’s top two female pound-for-pound talents, Shevchenko removed all drama from the 25-minute affair.
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“I was prepared for a war. I even took all my anti-inflammatory pills with me because I didn’t know how I was going to walk out of the octagon,” Shevchenko said at the post-fight press conference. “But the training I did for this fight was so hard, it helped me to have a less hard fight. But it wasn’t something I felt was going to be easy.
“During the fight, from the very beginning to the very end, I couldn’t let myself be very sure: ‘Oh, it’s going great and I’ll relax now.’ I was fighting with the highest level of opponent, Weili – and she’s the highest level of opponent, very dangerous in every moment. Knowing she has this knockout power, one punch, I saw I had several body kicks and I thought, ‘One more and it’s going to be it.’ But then you have to remember if you approach too soon, there’s a punch that’s going to hit you very hard and you might be finished on the ground.”
Challenges in Two Divisions
After her victory, Shevchenko acknowledged the likes of Natalia Silva and Erin Blanchfield as legitimate contenders at 125 pounds. However, the flyweight champ is also contemplating a return to bantamweight, where she once challenged Amanda Nunes for the title. Shevchenko is intrigued by the possibility of a showdown with current champion Kayla Harrison or a trilogy with Nunes. For now, nothing is set in stone.
“I think [Harrison is] one of the possibilities, and I’ll consider this,” Shevchenko said. “For now, I want to take care of the injuries that I have … but after a week or so, I’ll have a conversation with my team, with my coach, and decide what is next.
“I feel there are good challengers at flyweight, as well: Erin, Natalia, and at bantamweight, now we have Amanda or Kayla. I think probably fans would like to see Amanda trilogy, because it’s unfinished business. But at the same time, it’s unclear: Is she returning, or not returning? Is she fighting or not fighting? It’s unknown in what shape she’s going to return: Half Amanda? Maybe full Amanda? Who knows. But Kayla is another possibility, and it’s going to be a super challenge.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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