Valentina Shevchenko is determined to regain the UFC Women’s Flyweight title from Alexa Grasso when the two meet at UFC 306.
The contest will be third time the pair will meet, having previously fought at UFC 285 and on a Fight Night card. The trilogy will take place inside The Sphere, Las Vegas, as the promotion prepare to put on one of the biggest nights in sporting history.
Prior to the bout, Shevchenko sat down with the media to discuss her upcoming contest. When asked what she has changed in her camp in order to ensure she has her hand raised against Grasso for the first time on Saturday night, ‘Bullet’ was quick to point out that believes she won the second fight before discussing the lengths she has went to this time round.
“You know, I can’t say the last two times, I would say it's wrong to say (it) that way because our second fight, everyone could see that I won the fight, but they give a draw. And like (can) you imagine a draw in these circumstances? So, what should I do? What should I change? I don't know.
“I really had to focus on performing and preparing myself the best way that I can and I can say I had an amazing training camp. I pushed myself to all possible limits and impossible limits and yeah, just ready for the action and it's going to be an amazing event and amazing fight.”
The mutual respect is palpable. Having already spent best part of 9 rounds inside the octagon with each other, Shevchenko and Grasso are more familiar with each other than most other opponents. This was further added to whilst they served as opposing coaches on the most recent season of The Ultimate Fighter. Shevchenko explained why she will always have respect for her opponents, before joking about the amount of time herself and Grasso have spent together this year. She said:
“I just know how hard it is to be a martial artist, to train every day and then to step in the Octagon and fight. That is already very respectable.
“Yeah, we spend so much time with Alex. I probably have seen her and her team more than I see my family during this year, and that is funny!”
Shevchenko has been at the forefront of women’s MMA for many years and is one of six female athletes set to compete on Saturday night. As big as the opportunity is to feature on such a historic card, the 36-year-old admitted that now is not the time for reflection, but to continue making waves in the sport.
“It's amazing. For me, it's everything because as I mentioned, it's martial arts, it's my life and I have this opportunity to fight in a historical event. It's not just big, it's huge but right now, it's action still for me, it's not time to pause and reflect on what you did.
“It's not time yet because I'm doing things right now. That's why I'm moving forward and I could say maybe after like five, ten years or whatever. Like, ‘What does it really mean for me?’ But right now, it's like it's pure action for me.”
You can watch the full interview, below:
