Valentina Shevchenko is determined to regain the UFC flyweight title that she believes belongs to her by right.
On September 16th, 'Bullet' will attempt to recover after suffering her first defeat in over five years. Upon entering the co-main event of UFC 285 earlier this year, Shevchenko surprisingly handed her gold to Alex Grasso after succumbing to a naked rear-naked choke submission in the fourth round. Seven months later, the pair will face off again on UFC Fight Night.
As fight week approaches, Shevchenko sat down with James Lynch in an exclusive interview with LowKick MMA to discuss her mindset ahead of the highly anticipated title fight. When asked if she was focusing on any specific aspect of her game before the rematch, 'Bullet' revealed that her training has been usual.
"It's everything. Everything as usual because in MMA, it's a complete fighting style. You and I are both complete MMA fighters. I have to focus on everything in terms of wins and losses as best as I can. I can't focus on one thing and then in the fight, something changed and I'm not prepared. The fighter who competes at a high level has to work on everything."
To prepare, Shevchenko has been honing her skills at the iconic Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand. There, 'Bullet' feels that she has been able to return to the roots of what eventually made her one of the most dangerous women in mixed martial arts.
"It's like when you're reliving everything from the beginning and it's like coming back to the place where you grew up. You remember your feelings on this journey to become the best. To become the greatest. And definitely, all these emotions wake you up and tell you, 'Okay, this is what you have to feel.' This is what you have to do.'"