“It wasn’t just about me.” Valentina Shevchenko shares how she survived her first early defeat

Valentina Shevchenko became UFC champion on December 8, 2018. After that, seven rivals tried to take the belt from her and they all ended the same way – the referee raised the hand of the current title holder . On March 4, 2023, Mexican Alexa Grasso attempted to take the belt from Shevchenko. Won the first round. She lost the second and third, and in the fourth, Shevchenko attempted a roundhouse kick, but Grasso reacted to the blow, took her back and gave Shevchenko a brutal variation of the rear naked choke.

The hand does not rest on the neck, but on the jaw and has a strong painful effect. In the same way, Khabib defeated Conor, and Abubakar Nurmagomedov said about this technique: “The jaw derails like a train, and the pain is simply impossible to bear.”

Shevchenko’s loss to Grasso was Valentina’s first stoppage loss in the UFC. Shevchenko’s other two losses were against Amanda Nunes, and there Valentina had complete fights against a heavier girl who knocked out Holly Holm, Ronda Rousey and Cris Santos in the first rounds. Now, when reading Shevchenko’s very brief responses to questions about the defeat, it may seem that this is an interview with a slightly injured athlete. In fact, Shevchenko has never been seen so focused. In ordinary life, Valentina can talk a lot about travel, cinema, weapons and sports. But now, apparently, the time has come where she just doesn’t want to talk until September 16.

— We haven’t communicated with you in six months and never communicated at all when you entered the fight as the champion who had lost the belt, so a very simple but important question: how are you?

– Great, just great. We returned to Las Vegas from Thailand a few days ago and are continuing to prepare.

— When was your last fight?

– Today (the interview was recorded on September 8 – )! Yes, I fully fought again today. In Las Vegas I have training partners from Andrade Muay Thai gym. And then there were the guys from Florida, with whom we spent several training camps together, from the Maya Academy.

— In Thailand, there is a popular training during which fighters run towards the statue of the Big Buddha. Have you tried this?

— I’ve been to Thailand several times and we’ve climbed up to Buddha several times, but I haven’t worked there running. I think the guys who do this have enormous physical endurance, because not all the cars go there. Usually, drivers slow down and pull out slowly. And guys who do that while running… I just don’t know what kind of physique you need to have.

— Do you remember when you were most tired in training recently?

“I can tell you that every training session went exactly like that. Every day and every workout brought exactly that feeling. But it’s not about being exhausted and without strength. It’s about spending energy and understanding that thanks to your character, you move forward, you force yourself to work, you defend yourself, you throw punches, you raise your hands.

I consider this to be the most important thing in developing a fighter character.

— You spent quite a bit of time in Asia: tell us how you trained there.

— I followed three months of training in Thailand in Tiger Muay Thai. There was a trip to Vietnam, to Hong Kong. It was a very good training camp, a great Thai atmosphere. And that’s why I feel good.

— Have you identified your main mistake in the lost match?

– This is MMA – here you can’t relax for a second, or think, or be distracted. This highlights once again how dangerous the sport we play is. On the one hand, everything seems to be going well, you are in the lead… Even here, I watch the fight again and I see that from start to finish I feel like I’m winning. But in the fourth round, a situation arises which brings the current result. This simply highlights once again that MMA is a sport that is unforgiving of even the slightest distraction from the situation in the octagon. On the other hand, there is now an option to fix everything. Correct all errors. Now I have a completely different attitude: go all the way and don’t break, only move forward.

— Immediately after the defeat, you posted a post on social media, thanked everyone for their support, and after that you didn’t post anything for 2.5 weeks. You didn’t have the atmosphere or didn’t have the technical skills?

– Wow, I didn’t even pay attention to that…

— How many days after the fight have you not trained?

“Basically, nothing has changed for me.” As it usually happens after a fight: a week of rest, then I start doing light training, then I gradually build up to it. This time everything was exactly the same. A week for any scrapes or wounds to heal, then training begins.

— Alexander Povetkin said that in 10 years he never rewatched his fight with Vladimir Klitschko, but how long did it take you to rewatch your fight in which you lost?

– And I always review all my fights: winning, losing, whatever. You can close your eyes, hide, and say, “That’s none of my business.” But it’s like when a person loses weight and is afraid to step on the scale. It’s just the truth that exists, it doesn’t make things better or worse. It’s just. And I think you should definitely watch your fights, whatever they are. It’s still a plus for your thinking to understand what you need to work on next.

— There are many examples of successful rematches in the UFC: Georges St-Pierre with Matt Serra, Cain Velasquez with Junior Dos Santos, Dustin Poirier with Conor McGregor. Is there one that motivates you, or did you like it more than the others plot-wise?

– I did not think about it.

— Which is more difficult: the evening of the day of a lost battle or the next morning, when the realization comes without adrenaline?

– Look… to be honest, it’s all these questions: what did you feel… what emotions… It was six months ago. It was a long time ago and it wasn’t with me. I’m not even going to think about it right now and I don’t want to. Now my mood is completely different. My attitude is not to carry all these sentimental and lyrical feelings with me. And move forward, to the end, without turning back anywhere. And I won’t even answer or think about it.

— The last question on your favorite topic – you called the Glock pistol one of the most practical pistols for yourself. Is there a gun you wouldn’t want to compete with? Classically, the least appreciated of this type of weapon?

— Yes, I like Glock and Sig Sauer. The Glock is a versatile pistol. It is easy to use, reliable, practical. When we lived in Peru, in the Amazon, the climate there was very humid and many types of weapons rusted. They literally have to be cleaned every day. And the Glock is the kind of gun that you can shoot every day for four months, not cleanly, and it will still shoot every day.

As for the “most troublesome model” for practical shooting, as you said, practical shooting competitions can be compared to MMA competitions. Let’s say a person practices all the techniques and strikes during MMA training, but in competitions he will use two or three that he is most proficient in. It’s the same with practical shooting: I shoot and like all guns, but for competition I will choose the one I am most comfortable with for performance.

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