via Getty
CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 08: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan celebrates her KO victory over Jessica Eye in their women’s flyweight championship bout during the UFC 238 event at the United Center on June 8, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
via Getty
CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 08: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan celebrates her KO victory over Jessica Eye in their women’s flyweight championship bout during the UFC 238 event at the United Center on June 8, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Valentina Shevchenko vs Jennifer Maia was the co-main event at UFC 255. ‘Bullet’ is one of the most dominant female fighters to have ever graced the octagon. She has not only beaten all the opponents put in front of her, but she has dominated them.
However, the UFC’s conveyor belt of talent has ensured a constant flow of challenges that has kept the champion on her toes. The No.3 ranked flyweight, Maia was a worthy challenger for the title. The Brazilian fighter arguably pushed ‘Bullet’ further than anyone else has been able to.
The fight was thoroughly entertaining and closer than most would have predicted as ‘Bullet’ was a -2,000 favorite going into the fight. Despite facing early adversity, she was able to show her championship mettle and secure a victory.
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Read: VIDEO: Joaquin Buckley delivers another blockbuster knockout at UFC 255
Valentina Shevchenko vs Jennifer Maia: Twitter reacts
Welterweight Belal Muhammad took to Twitter to share his thoughts on coming up against Shevchenko
I would be nervous standing across the cage from Valentina I can’t imagine what maia is feeling
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) November 22, 2020
Promising bantamweight star Sean O’Malley took to Twitter to laud the two women for an excellent second round.
Round of da year
— Sean O'Malley (@SugaSeanMMA) November 22, 2020
Fellow Brazilian fighter and former champion Rafael dos Anjos took to Twitter and gave his opinion on round two of the fight.
Great round by Maia #UFC255
— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) November 22, 2020
Following her win, ‘Bullet’ delighted fans by performing her trademark post-fight dance.
No better tradition 💃 #UFC255 pic.twitter.com/A8PmqcCxaC
— UFC (@ufc) November 22, 2020
Heavyweight Tanner Boser was in awe of the champion after her fourth title defense.
Valentina Schevchenko is the fuckin best. #UFC255
— Tanner Boser (@BulldozerBoser) November 22, 2020
Brett Okamoto of ESPN Tweeted in awe of Shevchenko and compared her to ‘Mighty Mouse’.
World class performance by Valentina Shevchenko. Again. She's starting to have the same problem Demetrious Johnson once did. She's making it look TOO easy. This martial artist is a treat to watch compete.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) November 22, 2020
Former fighter Kenny Florian took to Twitter to voice the thoughts of most MMA fans. He said that he did not expect it to be this close.
I didn’t see this fight as close but wow is Maia tough! Another dominant performance for Shevchenko. There’s nobody that I see that’s even on the horizon that can challenge her right now. #UFC255
— Kenny Florian (@kennyflorian) November 22, 2020
Marc Raimondi of ESPN showered praise on Jennifer Maia for her valiant effort.
Maia has always been incredibly durable, strong and tough to finish. That holds here. But Shevchenko was in complete control of that fight. Comprehensive victory. #UFC255
— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) November 22, 2020
Actress Rosie Perez lauded Valentina Shevchenko’s efforts in her Tweet.
😂. Really great show. Congratulations @BulletValentina-Freaking tough strong ass fighter. Mad props to #Maia. #UFC255 https://t.co/ymSdJsEf8M
— Rosie Perez (@rosieperezbklyn) November 22, 2020
ESPN’s Ariel Helwani took to Twitter to share an interesting statistic about Valentina Shevchenko and her performance tonight.
Shevchenko has five takedowns in this fight, which ties her UFC career high, done in her title fight against Joanna Jędrzejczyk, per @ESPNStatsInfo
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 22, 2020
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What did you make of Maia’s performance tonight? Did she push the champion further than anyone else has before? Let us know in the comments below.
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