Valentina Shevchenko has her sights set on gold and she wants to return to the site of one of her biggest career wins in hope of finally taking home a UFC championship.
Shevchenko is expected to face UFC women’s flyweight champion Nicco Montano later this year after making a successful debut at 125 pounds in February and now she has a date in mind for that showdown.
Shevchenko is targeting UFC 225 in Chicago as the perfect landing spot for her fight with Montano as her manager confirmed in a e-mail to MMANews.com on Monday. Shevchenko also followed that up with a message of her own in hopes of landing a spot on the upcoming card on June 9.
Waiting on the date for my next fight.
Would be happy to come back to Chicago again ! #UFC225 June 9 #Chicago #125 #FightForTheBelt @danawhite @ufc @Mickmaynard2 pic.twitter.com/zdZKpkC93E— Valentina Shevchenko (@BulletValentina) March 5, 2018
The card in Chicago will be held at the United Center where Shevchenko picked up one of her biggest career wins as she defeated former women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm in a five round decision.
Now Shevchenko would like to return there with the women’s flyweight title on the line as she’s awaiting a response from Montano, who won the belt by way of “The Ultimate Fighter” last December.
Montano required surgery on her foot after suffering an injury in the lead up to her title fight against Roxanne Modafferi that would keep her out of action until early summer 2018.
That timeline would match Shevchenko’s desire to fight in June as she hopes to face Montano and finally realize her dream to become UFC champion.
While Montano is the champion, she will almost assuredly be a heavy underdog to Shevchenko, who has torn through several top competitors since joining the UFC roster. Most recently, Shevchenko dismantled UFC newcomer Priscila Cachoeira to officially cement her place at the top of the flyweight rankings.
As of now, the UFC hasn’t made any official announcements regarding a main event for the card in Chicago but several fighters have offered to fill the slot. In addition to Shevchenko, middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has asked for his next fight against Yoel Romero to take place at UFC 225.
There have also been persistent rumors that the UFC was considering a welterweight title fight between Tyron Woodely and Rafael dos Anjos for the card as well.
Would you like to see Nicco Montano defend her title against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 225 in Chicago? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
