Alexa
Grasso made her first flyweight title defense against Valentina
Shevchenko in the main event at Noche UFC on Saturday. “Bullet”
looked to regain the title she’d lost to the Mexican in a huge
upset at UFC 285 earlier this year.
Advertisement
Both fighters went toe-to-toe from the opening bell, with
Shevchenko likely edging out the first round with some leg kicks
and control time against the fence. Nevertheless, Grasso bounced
back strong in the second frame, dropping Shevchenko with a huge
right hand. However, the former champ managed to control incoming
damage by landing an immediate takedown and spending the rest of
the round in control.
Shevchenko’s grappling dominance was also the story of the third
round, although Grasso displayed impressive nerves in fighting
through a guillotine. The fourth frame was extremely close as
“Bullet” failed to control Grasso on the ground while the Mexican
unleashed a flurry of knees during a frantic exchange.
Although Shevchenko was seemingly leading in the final frame, she
lost her grip during a tie-up and ended up giving her back. Grasso
spent the rest of the round trying to sink in a rear-naked
choke.
In the end, Alexa
Grasso retained her flyweight title with the fight being scored
a majority
draw. While Sal D’Amato gave it to Shevchenko, Junichiro Kamijo
had Grasso winning and Mike Bell scored it a draw with a 10-8 fifth
round in favor of the reigning champion.
During her post-fight Octagon interview,
Valentina
Shevchenko declared she had done enough to regain her title and
blamed the decision on the potential pressure felt by the judges
due to the event being held on Mexican Independence Day.
“Yes. I really think it was 3-2 on my side. But judges, I think
they felt a little bit, like pressure because it’s kind of like
Mexican Independence Day,” Shevchenko said. “That’s why they give
one more to that Mexican fighter… I think I did enough and in the
fair competition, victory would be mine.”