It’s kind of hard to believe, but Valentina Shevchenko has never been MMA Junkie’s Female Fighter of the Year – until now.
For a dominant UFC champion who racked up seven women’s flyweight title defenses in her first reign from 2018-2022, you would think maybe, just maybe, the award would have landed on her mantle during such a historic stretch. The reality is, she faced incredibly stiff competition when it came time to vote on award winners each year, often making the shortlist.
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In a year that saw the fewest women’s fights in the UFC since 2018, it was finally Shevchenko’s year in 2025 after going 2-0 with a pair of title defenses.
Shevchenko’s first reign came to an end by submission against Alexa Grasso at UFC 285 in 2023 (guess who took home the award that year). The rematch at the first Noche UFC event ended in a draw, marking Shevchenko’s first winless year in MMA since 2010, when she was competing regularly in muay Thai and kickboxing. In her lone 2024 appearance, Shevchenko reclaimed her throne in a third meeting with Grasso at UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas, starting a second reign.
In her first appearance of the year, Shevchenko met top contender Manon Fiorot, who entered her title opportunity on a 12-fight winning streak. The co-main event of UFC 315 saw Shevchenko’s championship-round experience shine. It was a very competitive fight, but when it seemingly hung in the balance, Shevchenko managed to give more for the judges to score, resulting in the first defense of her second reign by unanimous decision.
May 10, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; Valentina Shevchenko (red gloves) reacts after defeating Manon Fiorot (blue gloves) during UFC 315 at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
Then “Bullet” ran into a “Magnum” in what was expected to be the toughest fight for Shevchenko in some time.
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Zhang Weili decided to take an opportunity to become a two-division champion and moved up from strawweight to take on Shevchenko at UFC 322 in New York. Many people expected Zhang to accomplish the feat. Oddsmakers had her tabbed as a near-even money challenger. However, the expectations were nowhere near what unfolded inside the octagon at Madison Square Garden.
Shevchenko completely dominated the fight from beginning to end, leaving the former strawweight champ questioning if she should return to 115 pounds.
Shevchenko is MMA Junkie’s 2025 Female Fighter of the Year after a two-fight stretch that included turning away a very deserving contender on an incredible winning streak and then shutting down a dominant champion chasing two-division greatness.
While in years’ past, Shevchenko was always just on the outside looking in for the award, this year was a two-horse race between her and the woman who won the strawweight title in Zhang’s absence, Mackenzie Dern. It was a 2-0 year for Dern, who submitted Amanda Ribas and then won the vacant strawweight title by unanimous decision against Virna Jandiroba.
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Sure, Kayla Harrison made her mark on history by becoming women’s bantamweight champion, but considering it was her only appearance, and she was a massive favorite to dethrone Julianna Peña, the vote tally simply wasn’t in her favor.
The 37-year-old Shevchenko has shown no signs of slowing down, and proving that twice against two of the best fighters available is why she’s MMA Junkie’s 2025 Female Fighter of the Year.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Valentina Shevchenko named 2025 Female Fighter of the Year
