30 greatest UFC fighters of all time [UPDATED]
19. Valentina Shevchenko
If Joanna Jedrzejczyk is the strawweight queen, then you can call Valentina Shevchenko the flyweight queen. A decorated kickboxer before transitioning to MMA, Shevchenko started her career 11-1 before joining the UFC bantamweight division in 2015. Shevchenko is 12-2 with the promotion with three performance bonuses.
Shevchenko went 3-2 in the division, beating former champion Holly Holm and Julianna Pena before getting a title shot against champion Amanda Nunes. Shevchenko’s only two losses in the organization came from Amanda Nunes, who many call the GOAT of women fighters.
From there Shevchenko moved to the flyweight division, winning the vacant title against Jedrzejczyk, and has since been on a nine-fight run consisting of wins against Jessica Eye, current Bellator champion Liz Carmouche, Katlyn Chookagian, Jennifer Maia, Jessica Andrade, Lauren Murphy and most recently Talia Santos last summer at UFC 275.
Shevchenko is 8-1 in title fights and currently holds the record for most consecutive title defenses in UFC women’s history with seven. Shevchenko is scheduled to defend her title against Alexa Grasso in March at UFC 285.