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#6 Valentina Shevchenko vs. Liz Carmouche (UFC Women's Flyweight Championship)
A rematch nine years in the making! Shevchenko vs. Carmouche 2 had intrigue written all over it.
It all began with Carmouche being the more mobile of the two as the veteran looked looser with her movements and was the one who attempted more stikes.
Shevchenko stayed defensive yet focused in her approach and was the counter attacker in the first round. Nothing much happened in the opening round as both women paid close attention towards reading each other.
The second round too began rather tepidly as the cautious stance was evident. Carmouche went for a takedown but Shevchenko stuffed it. Shevchenko began getting into the groove as the round progressed and he pushed forward while even attempting a superman punch.
Shevchenko stayed in southpaw and continued to stalk Carmouche. The second round was uneventful as well. The fans started getting restless.
The third round saw the biggest moment of the fight as Shevchenko knocked Carmouche down with a quick combination. Carmouche stayed down and invited Shevchenko into her guard but the champion had other plans. The referee stood Carmouche up before Shevchenko took Carmouche down with a classic underhook judo slam.
Shevchenko had the momentum on her side heading into the championship rounds. The range and timing were also on Shevchenko's side as Carmouche failed to land a single significant strike in the third round.
Carmouche shot a takedown in the fourth round but the sloppy attempt was easily defended by Shevchenko. The Champion settled into Carmouche's guard near the fence. The referee got the fight back to the centre of the Octagon due to inactivity on the ground.
Shevchenko rocked Carmouche with a spinning back fist. Carmouche rushed in for a body lock but Shevchenko spun and landed. Shevchenko tried to flatten her out and get her back but Carmouche scrambled and Shevchenko ended up in side control. Shevchenko ended the first championship round in a dominant position.
Shevchenko just had to stay calm and collected in the final round and the fight was in the bag. She didn't do anything careless and managed to take Carmouche down again. The champ stayed on top of her opponent and nullified Carmouche's attempts of putting together a late comeback.
Shevchenko ended with 7+ minutes of top control and a 4:1 significant strike differential ratio. Pure dominance from the champ.
Result: Valentina Shevchenko def. Liz Carmouche via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
That wasn't the most of entertaining fights and it was quite a disappointment to be honest.
However, what mattered for Shevchenko was that she got the job done and did so by exerting her technical superiority. 'Bullet' is still the champion and we don't see anyone taking that belt off of her anytime soon.
