Alexa Grasso stunned the world when she submitted dominant women’s champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 285. The Mexican-born athlete forced the tap out of the former flyweight champion in the fourth round to win the title. The fight was arguably the biggest upset of the evening, as Shevchenko’s undisputed reign had spanned over years with seven title defenses.
Now, Grasso has shed some light on the technique she used to submit Shevchenko at UFC 285. According to her, an important direction from her coach was crucial in making the most out of her chokehold on Shevchenko.
Grasso came well-prepared for ‘Bullet’ and threatened her on the feet from the very first round. Later, the champion made the adjustments and took the fight to the ground where she dominated. However, a failed spinning back-kick attempt ended up compromising Shevchenko. Grasso capitalized on the mistake, took the former champion’s back, and sank in a choke across her jaw.
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In an interview after the title victory, Grasso explained how she proceeded after securing the choke. Unlike the traditional rear naked choke, Grasso had her arm across Shevchenko’s jaw and not under the chin. However, the sheet pressure of the squeeze was enough to tame the 35-year-old.
Grasso said, “Once I got the choke, my coach always tells me to count. I’m supposed to count and squeeze. One, squeeze, two, squeeze, three, squeeze, four, squeeze. I got all the way [to] 12 against Valentina. Then she tapped”
Grasso recently impressed fans and pros with footage of her drilling the technique that took Shevchenko down before the submission. Now, fans had quite a few reactions to the news of this gritty technique from the Grasso camp.
Fans react to Alexa Grasso explaining her UFC 285 submission technique
Under a Reddit post highlighting Grasso’s quote, fans had quite a few things to say. Some of them congratulated Grasso’s brilliance, while some applauded Shevchenko’s resilience. There were also those that joked about how many squeezes it would take to submit them.
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Following are some of the reactions from the fans:
- 2 squeezes max for me. Would likely pass out after 1.
- Good method of making sure you don’t blow out your arms.
- Almost pulled a Volk and survived off sheer F*ck You Energy.
- God that face crank looked like it hurt so bad. Was worried for a second for Valentinas jaw/teeth. That moment felt like forever while watching live.
- That before and after pic of Valentina with the bottom half of her face nearly translucent white is one of the greatest MMA photos of all time.
- Got that Andy Ruiz holding the taquitos grip
- Ya her whole head was red like tomato. ( I dare say redder than the original UFC Tomato.). When Grasso removed her arm from Valentina’s face you could see the color difference.
What are your thoughts on Grasso’s technique? Do you think she could do it again if the pair rematch? And how many squeezes like that could you withstand?
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Watch This Story– MMA pros react to Alexa Grasso becoming third Mexican UFC champ after upsetting Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 285
Let us know in the comments below.