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EDMONTON, AB – SEPTEMBER 09: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan raises her hands after facing Amanda Nunes of Brazil in their women’s bantamweight bout during the UFC 215 event inside the Rogers Place on September 9, 2017 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

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EDMONTON, AB – SEPTEMBER 09: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan raises her hands after facing Amanda Nunes of Brazil in their women’s bantamweight bout during the UFC 215 event inside the Rogers Place on September 9, 2017 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
UFC commentator and analyst Joe Rogan is in complete awe of the current flyweight champion of the world, Valentina Shevchenko. The “Bullet” is set to take on Jennifer Maia in her fourth title defense for the flyweight gold. Rogan shared his thoughts on the future Hall of Famer and arguably one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time.
He said, “Valentina Shevchenko is hot in a scary way. With all due respect, I am a giant fan of her. I had a conversation with Dream Killer Bolanos,.. now he is fighting in Bellator… and he said, ‘I think she has the best fight IQ’, and I was like, ‘I can’t argue with that.”
Valentina Shevchenko is a former professional boxer, kickboxer, and a multiple-time world champion in women’s Muay Thai. Shevchenko is the only fighter to have come close to beating the dual champion, Amanda Nunes. Needless to say, many believe that she did enough in the rematch against Nunes back at UFC 215 to dethrone the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world.
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CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 08: (L-R) Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan kicks Jessica Eye in their women’s flyweight championship bout during the UFC 238 event at the United Center on June 8, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
With an impeccable resume that boasts of wins over former champions including Holly Holm and Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Shevchenko is one of the fiercest strikers in the UFC.
“It’s interesting how you need those weight classes, you need those increments because Valentina at 125 is just a f****** monster. She’s a monster. She’s so good.”
‘Bullet’ is currently only on a five-fight win streak and has the ability to finish her opponents both on the ground and with her impeccable striking. Currently 19-3 in her MMA career, she is destined for greater heights.
Valentina Shevchenko takes on Jennifer Maia at UFC 255
Having avenged her loss against Liz Carmouche with a comfortable unanimous decision win back in August last year, Shevchenko continued her spectacular run with a TKO win over Katlyn Chookagian.
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Rogan said, “The last time, I tried to pump myself up against Katlyn Chookagian. But all I could think was like, ‘how is this girl going to beat her.’ She has everything perfect.”
“Valentina makes you pay, so all those shots that you throw, the volume. Those shots come back at you. Those kicks come back at you. Those elbows come back at you, and you are like wow… Now everything’s at a distance and you lose your ability to engage. Every time you try to engage, she tried to take your f****** head off.”

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HOUSTON, TEXAS – FEBRUARY 08: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan celebrates her TKO victory over Katlyn Chookagian in their women’s flyweight championship bout during the UFC 247 event at Toyota Center on February 08, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
The “Bullet” is the favorite going into her fourth title defense against Jennifer Maia. The Brazilian fighter has missed weight twice in her last three outings inside the Octagon. After dropping a unanimous decision loss to Katlyn Chookagian, Maia picked up a first-round submission win over Joanne Calderwood to earn her title shot.
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Beating Valentina Shevchenko will be a whole different ball game altogether. At just 32 years of age, Shevchenko still has a lot left in her before she rests her gloves.
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