'Thank you for the kind words' - Valentina Shevchenko receives a call from the president of Kyrgyzstan following UFC 266 win 

Valentina Shevchenko has thanked Sadyr Nurgozhoevich Japarov, the president of Kyrgyzstan, after he congratulated her on her UFC 266 win.

Last Saturday night in Las Vegas we saw Valentina Shevchenko continue her sensational rise to prominence in women’s mixed martial arts. She successfully defended her UFC women’s flyweight title for a sixth time. She came up against a very game Lauren Murphy. In the end, 'Lucky' just didn’t have enough to stop the Valentina Shevchenko hype train with the champion securing a fourth round TKO win.

After the fight, 'Bullet' had a pleasant surprise in the form of a call from the aforementioned Japarov.

“Thank you dear Sadyr Nurgozhoevich for the kind words and congratulations after the fight! It was a pleasure to receive a call from you! Honored to get a call from the president of Kyrgyzstan @sadyr_japarov after my victory last night !”

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The undeniable star power of Valentina Shevchenko

She may not be the female equivalent of Conor McGregor but people are really starting to appreciate just how good Valentina Shevchenko is. The 33-year-old has been winning fights for fun over the course of the last few years. It’s a legacy we expect to be extended as we look ahead to the remainder of 2021 and beyond.

The big question now is a simple one: what will she do next? There’s every chance we’ll see the great Valentina Shevchenko continue to knock off challengers for fun in the next few years. However, it’s equally as likely, in our view, that she’ll lock horns with Amanda Nunes in a blockbuster trilogy showdown.

By all accounts it’s what the fans want to see, and if Nunes can beat Julianna Pena, it feels like the most obvious route forward.

There's a lot of red tape the UFC would need to go through in terms of the weight and putting it on a pay-per-view. However, this is a fight that's more than worthy of headlining any card the promotion puts out there.