“Valentina Lost That Fight”- Sean O’Malley Gives Valentina Shevchenko a Brutal Reality Check About Her Latest Performance
Valentina Shevchenko made history with her seventh title defense at UFC 275 against Taila Santos. ‘Bullet’ currently has the most title defenses against active champions in the UFC. Her title defense against Santos also broke Ronda Rousey’s long-standing record of title defenses in the promotion.
However, despite all the records set and broken, there was a lot of controversy around her win. Many fans as well as pundits believed that Shevchenko did not do enough to win the fight. This opinion was also shared by UFC bantamweight Sean O’Malley.
In a recent interview, he said, “I thought Santos beat Valentina last night. Dude, she took her back, was holding her mouth shut for like, three different times. Valentina didn’t land anything that was that crazy besides that headbutt. Valentina lost that fight. Santos is champ.”
‘Sugar’ continued, “I didn’t think she landed anything; that headbutt really f**ked up. You can’t count that. You can’t be like, ‘Okay, that’s a strike.’”
The crucial moment in the fight was the accidental clash of heads, which completely shut Santos’ right eye. Despite a severely compromised eye, Santos was able to inflict significant damage and win rounds on the judges’ scorecards as well.
What is next for Valentina Shevchenko?
Although her win against Santos was not as clinical as most of her other title defenses, ‘Bullet’ proved that she is still in a league of her own which leads to the next and most important question; who is next for Valentina Shevchenko?
The only logical matchup here will be for her to move up and challenge for the bantamweight strap once again. Julianna Pena will take on Amanda Nunes later this year. If Pena wins it will be a new challenge for Shevchenko. However, if Nunes wins, it will set up a third fight between the two women. Regardless, either fight will be extremely entertaining.
What do you think is next for Valentina Shevchenko? Let us know in the comments below!
