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Michael Bisping was left with a sour taste in his mouth by the Grasso-Shevchenko split draw. Unfortunately, he wasn’t the only one who felt that the draw was an unwise decision on the part of one of the judges. Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko‘s rivalry was perhaps the most thrilling part of Noche UFC. Nobody expected it to come to such an anti-climatic ending.

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Michael Bisping is a former UFC fighter who now analyzes the sport for fans. On his YouTube channel, Bisping held nothing back while talking about the way the Noche UFC main event ended. A lot of fans also believe that Shevchenko was robbed of a victory, but is anyone correct about anything? Bisping weighs in with his thoughts.

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Michael Bisping is not a fan of what happened

The fight went on for a whole five rounds with unrelenting efforts from both fighters. While Shevchenko was able to hold her own against Grasso this time, there were some mistakes that could’ve cost her. She was almost forced into submission via a rear naked choke like last time. Except for this time, she managed to fight it off. Bisping had serious thoughts about the scores.

“We go to the judges scorecards. Split decision. I’m like okay all right split decision,” Bisping said in his analysis video. “I still thought Shevchenko won it three rounds to two. Potentially four rounds to one.” 

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Referee Mike Bell is the one who got the most criticism because he favored Grasso in the final round giving her a 10-8. This decision balanced out the number by other judges making it a 47-46 scoreline. This did not sit well with anyone at all including Bisping and Shevchenko.

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“There was no way that that was a 10-8 round,” Bisping claimed. “Back in the day to win around via a 10-8 scorecard you had to go out there and almost kill your opponent . . . . The new criteria is . . . it’s something like this. You’re just going to have a clear winner, a clear winner where you can look at it and very very confidently say that lady won. Simple as that okay? that makes it a 10-8 round. Well I don’t think round five was a 10-8 round. Far from it.” 

Bisping has his opinions in a valid place. Many fans argue that while Shevchenko struggled a bit in the last round, it was by no means a total domination. Even with Grasso ending on top in the very end, there was truly no way to determine a true winner.

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Shevchenko wasn’t pleased with the results either

Valentina Shevchenko has been waiting to get the title back ever since it was snatched from her. So after fighting a match where she didn’t get overwhelmed, she expected good things. She managed to not only survive but outdo Grasso in the first three rounds.

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Also Read:6 Years After Loss to Amanda Nunes, Valentina Shevchenko Puts a Question Mark on Rival’s Win With Calls of a Trilogy Fight

“I think three rounds I won, two rounds maybe was her,” Shevchenko told the press after the fight. “But I feel the 10-8 in the fifth round, it’s completely unfair.” The 10-8 decision by judge Mike Bell is the root of all frustration for the fighter, and the root for all frustration in fans and analyzers alike. Regardless, for now, Alexa Grasso remains the rightful reigning champion. Who were you rooting for during the final matchup?

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Prit Chauhan

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Prit Chauhan is a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. His portfolio shows him as the go-to event coverage writer at ES and his work on UFC 297 is proof of the same. As an experienced writer and a longtime MMA fan, Prit’s strong suit lies in telling the relatively unknown and more personal stories of fights and fighters. He is also a huge fan of Muay Thai phenom Rodtang Jitmuangnon, and covers ONE Championship-related news as well. When not on his laptop covering his favorite sport, you’ll find Prit in some cozy cafe with his guitar jamming with his friends. A psychologist by vocational training, you’ll find his take on the behind-the-scenes drama quite intriguing. For more, you can reach out to him at-

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Rupkamal Sarma

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