Valentina Shevchenko wants the odds to be even when she faces Alexa Grasso for the third time and believes it would be “fair and right” to have their trilogy in Kyrgyzstan on the nation’s Independence Day.
If the UFC wants to do that, they will find a way: Valentina Shevchenko
The former UFC Women’s Flyweight champion faced Grasso, the reigning champion who dethroned her in March, in front of a hostile crowd at UFC Noche in Las Vegas on 16th September- celebrating the week of the Mexican Independence Day.
The T-Mobile Arena last Saturday night was filled with Mexican fans, as they cheered for Grasso, as well as other Mexican fighters on the UFC Noche card, and despite “Bullet” being a fan favourite, the unfamiliar crowd made her feel that the rematch was not on equal grounds.
Now, in the wake of the split draw with Grasso, Shevchenko calls for the trilogy to take place in her home country, Kyrgyzstan, on the Independence Day which is 31st August.
“I think it would be very fair and right to have the next [fight] in Kyrgyzstan, independence day of Kyrgyzstan,” said Shevchenko on The MMA Hour. “It has to be equal. We can’t do Mexican Independence Day twice. All of the people in Kyrgyzstan, all of the government, they will do everything possible to make it happen.”
The most feasible option for the UFC to have Grasso vs. Shevchenko 3 would be at the capital city of Bishkek which bosts some arenas capable of hosting a numbered UFC event. While chances are slim that the promotion would actually conduct a UFC event in Kyrgyzstan, Shevchenko trusts the UFC as well as her country’s government and feels that they would do her right in the trilogy.
“If the UFC wants to do that, they will find a way, especially because there were people from the government flying to the United States to watch and support me fighting. It speaks a lot about that, the president of Kyrgyzstan, he’s very into the sport…it’s very important for me as an athlete to have the support from him as well, so I think it’s gonna be fair,” she added. [H/T MMA News]
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