UFC champ Valentina Shevchenko keeping options open for next fight

UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko is now looking out for her option for her upcoming title defense and has identified two worthy candidates.

Shevchenko, who won by a narrow decision over Taila Santos at UFC 275 in June to record her eighth championship defense, thinks Alexa Grasso and Manon Fiorot as potential rivals moving forward. Both Grasso and Fiorot are undefeated in the cage and are riding strong winning streaks.

“I would consider two names: It’s Alexa Grasso and Fiorot,” Shevchenko told MMA Junkie on the World MMA Awards red carpet. “These are two challengers that are extremely good and ready for this title test. I think any of them.”

The alternate for Shevchenko is a trilogy fight with Amanda Nunes, the reigning featherweight and bantamweight champion, who has two victories over her, including one by split decision at UFC 215, which Shevchenko believed she had clinched victory.

“There is interest always, and I’m actually ready for that because it’s a fight that makes sense,” Shevchenko said of a Nunes trilogy. “But yeah, let’s see how everything plays out because I think any bright names, any super fights would be good.”

Super fights may also herald the arrival of opponents for Shevchenko's championship, as strawweight champion Zhang Weili expressed her desire to take on "The Bullet," who is also willing to be challenged.

“Definitely it’s one of the options that can happen,” Shevchenko said. “I saw her recent fights. She got stronger, more tactical, but if a fight is gonna happen, it’s not gonna help her.”

Valentina Shevchenko, the UFC Women's Flyweight Champion, faced Taila Santos at UFC 278 and overcame the hardest obstacle of her title stint. For the first time throughout "The Bullet's" tyrannical rule, the fight was so closely contested that a split decision was reached.

There have been numerous requests for a replay between Shevchenko and Santos because of the intensely contested character of that contest. However, does Valentina concur?

Since Grasso, Santos, and Fiorot are not currently scheduled and the champion has stated that she is prepared to fight right away, it might only be a matter of days before The Bullet's next opponent is revealed.