UFC Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko didn’t bring anything to UFC 275 that Taila Santos hadn’t seen before.
Shevchenko earned a split decision win over Santos in the UFC 275 co-headliner. But many fans and pundits felt that Santos did enough to earn the win on the scorecards and also had Shevchenko in a near submission early on in the fight.
Shevchenko had earned relatively lopsided wins in her past few flyweight title defenses, but Santos brought the toughest test of her 125lb career. Santos didn’t allow Shevchenko to dictate the pace of the fight and matched up well with the flyweight champion on the feet and ground.
During a recent interview on MMA Fighting’s Trocacao Franca podcast, Santos explained how she wasn’t caught off guard by anything Shevchenko presented.
“Everybody sees her as this monster, the boogeyman,” Santos said. “After I fought her, I could see she’s not all that, you know? She’s very tough and intelligent, of course, but nothing abnormal. I felt very confident. I didn’t feel any supernatural power. The way people talked about this woman, I thought to myself, ‘Wow, I won’t be able to take her down.’ I imposed my takedowns and managed to do everything I wanted. I expected [more from her]. It was easy to [take her down] and get her back. I expected it to be tougher.”
UFC President Dana White warned fans not to sleep on Santos ahead of her fight with Shevchenko. Despite being relatively unknown to the majority of the audience, Santos won the fight on a lot of fans’ scorecards.
A Shevchenko vs. Santos rematch could certainly be in the cards next. But former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate will also make her flyweight debut at UFC 276 against Lauren Murphy and a win could give her the next shot.
It’s unclear what’s next for Shevchenko and Santos, but, certainly, Santos isn’t intimidated by Shevchenko’s skillset.
What were your thoughts on Taila Santos’ performance against Valentina Shevchenko?
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