LAS VEGAS – Valentina Shevchenko’s dominance has reached the point where MMA fans are shocked when she loses a round.
Shevchenko (20-3) defended the UFC’s 125-pound championship for the fourth time on Saturday, defeating Jennifer Maia (18-7-1) unanimously. All three judges scored a blowout win for the champion, 49-46.
The flyweight title bout co-headlined UFC 255 at Apex.
“I’m very happy it was five rounds because I had a long break,” said Shevchenko, who fought for the first time since a TKO win against Katlyn Chookagian in February. “I had to feel the spirit in the octagon, the spirit of struggle, to know that I was 100 percent healthy again. Nothing bothers me. I’m glad it was Jennifer Maia first, a tough opponent, and then she went Route, so I know for the next one that I’m 100 percent healthy.
“As I was preparing for this fight, I knew she would not be an easy opponent. I watched her fight and saw what she is. She never gave up. I knew it would be a good fight for the belt would.”
All in all, it was a dominant performance by the 32-year-old champion who is ESPN’s second greatest female fighter on the planet. However, there was a brief glimmer of hope for Maia in the second round when she managed to pull Shevchenko down, lay her on her back, and become only the second flyweight in UFC history to win a round against Shevchenko.
The MMA community responded immediately to Maia’s ability to level the result after two rounds, but any optimism she could achieve was short-lived. Shevchenko easily took control, including a takedown of his own, on round three and ran the rest of the way on the scorecards.
“Every time I work on strike and argument,” said Shevchenko. “I prepare my body to respond properly.”
According to UFC Stats data, Shevchenko outwitted Maia in strikes 231-101 – and the discrepancy has been revealed. Maia’s face was bloody at the end of the fight, and Shevchenko earned a lot of style points with twisting elbows and kicks. She mixed in five successful takedowns which is the best she has recorded in a UFC fight. She used five takedowns for her decisive win over Joanna Jedrzejczyk for the vacant title in 2018.
Maia, from Curitiba, Brazil, proved to be a resilient opponent, and her physical strength at simply holding Shevchenko down in the second round and against the fence during other parts of the fight was remarkable, but she scored very little and was very little actual offense easy target on the last lap when Shevchenko had clearly found her groove.
Shevchenko, who was born in Kyrgyzstan and fights outside of Las Vegas, could face former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade on her next title defense. She will likely be a major favorite in this fight, but the belief is that this will be her toughest test since claiming the belt in 2018. Since then, her defenses have been directed against Jessica Eye, Liz Carmouche, Katlyn Chookagian and Maia.
To make the evening even more enriching, Shevchenko’s older sister Antonina also won on Saturday and knocked out Ariane Lipski on the UFC 255 card.
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