There is plenty of hoopla surrounding the highly anticipated matchup between Valentina Shevchenko and Zhang Weili, and that’s sure to be amplified with UFC 322 right around the corner.
Shevchenko will put her women’s flyweight championship on the line against Weili in the UFC 322 co-main event Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The fight was expected to be a champion-vs.-champion showdown, but the UFC made Weili vacate her strawweight belt in order to challenge for the 125-pound title. Even without the champion-vs.-champion billing, there’s no denying that Shevchenko vs. Weili is one of the biggest women’s fights in UFC history that pits the top two fighters in the official UFC pound-for-pound rankings.
With that kind of hype around a superfight, it could be easy to caught up in the hoopla, but Shevchenko remains laser focused on the task at hand.
“For me, it’s definitely a very important fight. But it’s kind of like I’m trying to get away from everything that’s happening around this fight – what people are saying,” Shevchenko told MMA Junkie. “You know me for a long time enough to understand my approach to the preparation for the fight. You know my personality. That’s why I’m trying to keep away all my mind about what’s happening. I know, to win the fight, it will take all dedication – not half, not like 90 percent, not 98 percent. It will take 100 and more. That’s why I give all my dedication to that (preparation). …
“For me, every fight is the best fight, the biggest fight. If you’re not gonna prepare like that, it’s not gonna be any good.”
Shevchenko, 37, has mostly ruled the UFC women’s flyweight division with an iron fist. After claiming the vacant title in December 2018 with a win over now-UFC Hall of Famer Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Shevchenko went on to defend her title seven consecutive times before a shocking upset submission loss to Alexa Grasso in March 2023. That result set up a rematch, which ended in a draw, and trilogy won by Shevchenko, who has since defended the 125-pound title for an eighth time earlier this year against Manon Fiorot.
If victorious, Shevchenko would tie former rival Amanda Nunes’ record for most UFC women’s championship fight victories at 11.
Weili, 36, will enter UFC 322 on a five-fight winning streak, which includes her reclaiming the 115-pound title against Carla Esparza in November 2022 and then defending the belt three times before vacating.
Shevchenko said it “doesn’t matter” that her showdown with Weili is no longer champion vs. champion. What’s most important is knowing how dangerous Weili is, even though she’s physically the smaller fighter.
“I’m focusing on the most, the hardest challenge every time,” Shevchenko said. “If you’re gonna be, ‘Oh no, she’s lighter, not enough power, I will be more powerful,’ it’s not the right approach. You have to think about the fight being the biggest challenge you’re gonna face. It’s the only right way. I’m expecting it’s gonna be a challenge definitely.
“She’s a great, amazing fighter with all skills, and I’ll bring everything I have and even more to secure the victory and still be the champion.”
