Valentina Shevchenko does not just champion the UFC women’s flyweight division. Every opportunity she gets, she champions the ability of women to excel in whatever they choose to do. It did not matter to her that she had to stand up to MMA royalty like Khabib Nurmagomedov once to defend ring girls against his comment that they were ‘useless.’ Never one to shy away from speaking her mind, ‘Bullet’ has now confessed why she feels the modern-day battle for gender equality is not something she can wholeheartedly get behind.

“In the past, when women fought for their rights, they were genuinely fighting for equality. Why? So they could pursue the same professions as men. Now we see women excelling in the same areas, like combat sports… So what is left to fight for? Things have already changed,” said Valentina Shevchenko to Ushatayka.

She argued that feminism has always been a movement for gender equality, not for women to dominate men. She feels that the modern-day ideologies of the movement pit the genders against each other.

“Therefore, it actually needs to be moderated now. Women already have their rights today. We should, on the contrary, celebrate and enjoy this, because the women who fought for these rights had a very difficult life, which is no longer the case for women today,” ‘Bullet’ added.

Valentina Shevchenko has carried this sentiment for years. Her upbringing deeply shapes the meaning behind some of her statements, even if they seem controversial. She comes from a Russian-Ukrainian military family and now holds Peruvian citizenship.

From a young age, the Kyrgyz-Peruvian star witnessed women achieving success equal to men in her household. Her mother, a former multiple-time Muay Thai champion, is now the president of Kyrgyzstan’s national Muay Thai association and played a major role in shaping Valentina’s career.

“These are the fruits of their struggle, and we should appreciate them. So when certain words are spoken aloud, they create this sense of confrontation between men and women, even though it should be about harmony between the sexes,” Shevchenko added.

Her father, Anatoly Shevchenko, served in the army and also played for the Kyrgyzstan national football team. Valentina’s sister, now a pilot, was also involved in MMA, highlighting the family’s influence on her perspective regarding gender equality.

Shevchenko wants to inspire girls to chase MMA dreams

Since 2003, Valentina Shevchenko has broken barriers in sports. She began her journey in Muay Thai and kickboxing, and over time, she expanded into K-1 and other promotions, competing in over 90 amateur fights and numerous professional matches. Along the way, the 37-year-old Shevchenko won the IFMA World Championship gold, several other world titles, and even captured the IFMA Royal World Cup in 2015.

During her career, she faced UFC fighters like Joanna Jędrzejczyk three times in her amateur days before meeting her again in the UFC. In the Octagon, only a handful of opponents, including Alexa Grasso (twice) and Amanda Nunes (twice), defeated her. Currently, she competes in the flyweight division and is riding a three-fight winning streak.

Back in 2022, Shevchenko spoke about inspiring other girls. “ I just like this idea that a young woman, a young girl, can look at me and say, ‘I want to be a martial artist.’ It means so much because I’m for strong, beautiful, independent women who can do everything and don’t feel limits. I want that,” she said after UFC 266.

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How do you view Valentina Shevchenko’s legacy in sports? Has the Kyrgyzstan-Peruvian star done enough to secure a spot in the UFC Hall of Fame? And what do you make of her thoughts on modern feminism?