Valentina Shevchenko, the ladies UFC flyweight champion, will defend her title against Katlyn Chookagian. That news has been revealed today, as the two fighters struck a deal after short negotiations. The clash will take place in Houston on February 8.
Shevchenko’s Third Title Defense
Shevchenko (18-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) never lost a fight in this division and is considered to be the best MMA flyweight fighter of the last decade. The Bullet, as the fans call Kyrgyzstani, won this title at UFC 231, beating Joanna Jedrzejczyk via unanimous decision.
Meanwhile, Chookagian (13-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) is the No.1 contender in the division, who is coming into this fight after two straight wins, over Joanne Calderwood at UFC 238, and Jennifer Maia back at UFC 244 this November. After losing the bout against Jessica Eye at UFC 231, via split decision, she missed the chance to challenge Shevchenko. But, eventually, Chookagian managed to bounce back and earn the shot at the title.
Her previous loss in UFC was against Liz Carmouche at UFC 205, and it was a split decision. After that, Chookagian made an impressive improvement, and it is no wonder why she holds the top spot among the contenders in this division.
Carmouche, meanwhile, was Shevchenko’s last opponent. The reigning champ experienced one of her three losses against the 35-year old American, way back in 2010. Now, she finally got revenge, some 9 years later. The Bullet was better in all five rounds and successfully defended her title for the second time, not giving the slightest chance for a surprise to her opponent.
Prior to her flyweight reign, Shevchenko decided to go to the bantamweight division, where she lost to Amanda Nunes, twice. Their second fight, at the UFC 215, was for the title, and the Brazilian won it via split decision. It was a highly controversial outcome, as many still believe that the judges favored Nunes, although she didn’t deserve to win. Following that, she returned to her natural category, and is dominating ever since.
McGregor’s Return Dictates the Headline
What is still unknown is the event’s numeration. If the Notorious decides to come back in January, it will also be a pay-per-view blockbuster, and that event will carry the UFC 246 label. It means that the fight between Shevchenko and Chookagian is going to be UFC 247.
At the moment, McGregor’s opponent is still not officially confirmed, and as time goes by, the chances for his return in January are getting slimmer. The Irish fighter wants to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov, but the undefeated champ isn’t willing to give a rematch to McGregor.
Justin Gaethje, Frankie Edvard, and Anthony Perris emerged as possible reserves. Yet, so far, there haven’t been any indications which one of them could challenge one of the biggest stars in UFC.
According to UFC insiders, the clash with Gaethje is the most realistic, because he and Nurmagomedov’s have the same agent. Some are claiming that the condition for another fight against the Russian Eagle is for Conor to meet with Gaethje.
