V. Shevchenko beat J. Maia in the UFC 255. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
One more fight, one more victory. This is usually the script, when Valentina Shevchenko is seen in the octagon and, against the Brazilian Jennifer maia, it was no different. At the UFC 255, an event held this Saturday (21), in Las Vegas, USA, the flyweight champion (56,7kg) extended her reign by beating her challenger in a unanimous decision by the judges (49-46, 49-46, 46-46 ). Despite confirming her favoritism, the Kyrgyzstani faced difficulties against a brave Tupiniquim fighter.
See too
The triumph against the Brazilian was Valentina's fourth title defense in the flyweight division. The number one debuted in the category in 2018 and has remained undefeated since then, surpassing names like Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Jessica Eye, Liz Carmouche, Katlyn chookagian e Jennifer maia.
The fight
In the first minute of the fight, Valentina Shevchenko e Jennifer maia they opted for striking, but, soon after the clash of powers, the Kyrgyz athlete quickly took down the Brazilian and controlled her on the ground. It's true that there wasn't much action, as Jennifer protected herself well and even managed to be annoying, even though she was on the bottom, preventing number one's advances.
In the second round, Valentina again showed her intention of taking the fight to the ground and managed to do so, but Jennifer got up and took her to the fence. Both exchanged blows near the fence, until the takedown was applied by Jennifer, who kept 'Bullet' there. In the end, Valentina tried to apply a triangle, which was defended by the Brazilian.
Valentina woke up in the third round, moved better and landed good blows on Jennifer. The Brazilian even managed to take the Kyrgyz athlete to the cage, but she managed to get out and continued to be better at striking. Knowing that there were just a few minutes left until the end of the round, Valentina knocked Jennifer down and landed on the ground without exposing herself. Jennifer managed to get up, took the champion to the railing, but couldn't hold her there and was, once again, knocked down.
The fourth round began with a good straight shot from Valentina, who responded well with a cross. The fight continued to develop on the feet, with 'Bullet' touching the Brazilian's face and body more times. Intelligently, knowing that she already had a certain advantage, she pretended to attack and applied a takedown. With the fight on the ground and Jennifer on the bottom, Valentina was more active on top, striking to the back and causing a lot of danger.
In the last round, Jennifer took Valentina to the fence again, but lost position and got the worst of the exchange. 'Bullet' landed good punches and kicks on the challenger, who had no response. Jennifer, again, preferred to lock her opponent against the fence, but without success. Standing up, Valentina showed superiority by distributing more jabs, straight shots and kicks.
At the end of the fight, Jennifer maia He got the worst of the judges' decision, winning just one of the five rounds, but despite the defeat, he performed well. After all, she was one of the few who gave the flyweight champion a real fight. In turn, Valentina Shevchenko remains sovereign and begins to aim for a new encounter with Amanda nunes.
UFC 255 RESULTS
MAIN CARD
Fly weight: Deiveson Figueiredo finished Alex Perez with a guillotine at 1m27s of R1 – Fight for the belt
Fly weight: Valentina Shevchenko derrotou Jennifer maia in the unanimous decision of the judges (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) – Fight for the belt
Welterweight Weight: Tim means derrotou Mike Perry in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Fly weight: Katlyn chookagian derrotou Cynthia calvillo in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Light Heavyweight: Paul Craig derrotou Mauritius Shogun by technical knockout at 3:36 of R2
PRELIMINARY CARD
Fly weight: Brandon Moreno derrotou Brandon royval by technical knockout at 4m59s of R1
Average weight: Joaquin buckley derrotou Jordan wright by knockout at 0m18s of R2
Fly weight: Antonina Shevchenko derrotou Ariane Lipski by technical knockout at 4m33s of R2
Welterweight Weight: Nicholas Dalby defeated Daniel Rodriguez via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Welterweight: Alan Jouban defeated Jared Gooden in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Average weight: Kyle Daukaus derrotou Dustin Stoltzfus in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Welterweight: Sasha Palatnikov defeated Louis Cosce via TKO at 2:47 of R3
Comments