Over the weekend (Sat. December 8, 2018) Valentina Shevchenko took home a unanimous decision victory over Joanna Jedrzejczyk. The UFC 231 co-main event victory earned Shevchenko the vacant UFC women’s flyweight championship. Now, Shevchenko has finally accomplished her lifelong goal of becoming a UFC champion.
Her first title defense will certainly be an intriguing one. Shevchenko was recently interviewed on “The MMA Hour” to discuss her victory, and who she’d like to face in her first title defense. When asked about a potential rematch with Jedrzejczyk, Shevchenko said she’s not rushing towards the idea at the moment (via MMA Fighting):
“For now, we have so many opponents to fight with,” Shevchenko said. “For me, I have much more goals for defending the title, and Joanna, she has more business in strawweight, so I think for now we are good to go and move forward.”
As for who Shevchenko could face next, former UFC women’s flyweight champion Nicco Montano could be a possibility. She was scheduled to defend her title against Shevchenko at UFC 228. However, Montano was forced off the card when she was hospitalized during her weight cut. Perhaps the UFC would be interested in booking that fight once again.
What do you think of a possible rematch between Shevchenko and Jedrzejczyk?
