Lauren Murphy stepped inside the octagon against Valentina Shevchenko in the co-main event at UFC 266 for the flyweight gold. ‘Bullet’ dominated the fight and handed ‘Lucky’ her first stoppage loss in MMA. However, Murphy made no excuses for her loss and gave full credit to ‘Bullet’ for her amazing performance.

She even compared her with the legendary athletes Michael Jordan and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

In an interview with MMAFighting, Murphy lauded the flyweight champion. She said, “She’s incredible. It was pretty crazy to be in there with somebody at that level. Because I’ve truly never competed with anybody at that level before. And I don’t remember the fourth round, really, so I guess that’s pretty good. And yeah, I mean, it’s a bummer to lose, and that’s the first time I have ever been finished. I think it was a good stoppage.”

She added, “I was pretty out of it by the time the ref pulled her off of me. So yeah, it’s definitely not the outcome we wanted. But, to be honest with you, it was pretty cool to be in there with a martial artist of her caliber. That’s a pretty cool experience. That must be what it’s like when people play one-on-one with Michael Jordan. Or like I don’t know, maybe that’s how guys felt when they were fighting Khabib or something. Because it really was, holy sh*t, this girl is really on another level, you know.”

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Is Valentina Shevchenko similar to Khabib Nurmagomedov?

Khabib Nurmagomedov is an undefeated fighter. Meanwhile, the women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko (22-3) has dominated almost every opponent inside the octagon. Even though she has had two setbacks in UFC, many believe it was a close fight and a controversial decision.

‘Bullet’, who sits at #2 in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings, is currently at her highest spot yet. Meanwhile, ‘The Eagle’ rose to the top of the pound-for-pound rankings.

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Even though Shevchenko’s professional fighting resume might not be like Nurmagomedov’s, she is still an active fighter in the promotion. Considering her current form, she might keep herself in the win column for a while, which will surely include her in the list of UFC’s legendary fighters.

What are your thoughts on Murphy’s comments on Valentina Shevchenko? Let us know in the comments below.