7 Things You Didn't Know About UFC Fighter Valentina Shevchenko

Valentina Shevchenko is one of the most dominant women's champions in MMA history. With a 22-3 record and 6 UFC Flyweight title defenses, Shevchenko's credentials are worthy of a future UFC Hall of Famer. She is a multi-faceted combat athlete who has also amassed a 57-2 kickboxing record and a 2-0 professional boxing record. Considered to be one of the greatest Muay Thai fighters in the world, Shevchenko has beaten four UFC champions in her career.

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Last time that we saw Valentina in the octagon was at UFC 266 when she overwhelmed Lauren Murphy en route to a TKO victory. She recently announced that she was ready for her next fight with the likes of Jessica Andrade and Katlyn Chookagian touted as possible opponents. This list takes a look at 7 things that people might not know about Valentina Shevchenko.

7 She Is Truly A Globetrotter

Born in Kyrgyzstan and now residing in Las Vegas, many assume that Valentina Shevchenko might have migrated to the United States for her MMA career. While it is true that she holds another citizenship in addition to Kyrgyzstani, it would come as a surprise that it is of the distant South American nation, Peru. Shevchenko has been a Peruvian citizen since 2008 and has continued to compete in professional boxing bouts there. Peru isn't the only other country that Valentina has roots in.

Her grandparents have Russian ethnicity and had moved to Kyrgyzstan while it was still part of the Soviet Union. By 2000, the kickboxing career of the then-12-year-old Valentina was on the upswing, and she even spent some time in Thailand learning Muay Thai and competing in tournaments. She would also compete in South Korea and China before deciding to take an excursion to Latin America when she was just 19.

She and her sister Antonina reached Peru along with their trainer Pavel Fedotov, and all three started teaching martial arts there. She liked the culture so much that Fedotov shifted his base of operations to Peru. Just over a year later, Valentina had become fluent in Spanish and earned her citizenship, emphasizing her love for Peru.

6 She Has Won A Peruvian Dancing Reality Show

While professional athletes dabbling in reality shows is nothing new, Valentina Shevchenko took it one step further by choosing to compete in a dancing reality show broadcast in Peru called Combate. What really stands out is the fact that Valentina and her partner won the whole thing. No wonder she has busted a few moves in the Octagon during post-fight victory celebrations.

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She even displayed her wrestling skills on the show, taking on Peruvian professional boxer David Zegarra in an exhibition wrestling match. True to form, she beat the boxer by submission in less than 60 seconds to earn bragging rights.

5 Her Pistol Tattoo

Many fans would have noticed the famous pistol tattoo on Valentina's lower stomach. It is that of a Glock with three extra bullets, and she got it to profess her passion for shooting. In fact, Valentina started firearms training when she was 18 and now regularly competes in pistol shooting competitions all over the world.

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Valentina considers shooting to be as important as martial arts and specifically loves the Glock pistol as it is easy to transport. She also feels that being proficient with pistols gives her a sense of security. Quite natural for a person with the Twitter handle 'bulletvalentina'.

4 The Origin Of Her Nickname

MMA fans would definitely remember Shevchenko's nickname in the UFC - 'The Bullet', considering the number of times it has been bellowed in the Octagon by Bruce Buffer. The moniker suits Shevchenko's explosive speed and power in addition to her love for guns, and it was something that was bestowed on her in the year 2000.

Back in Kyrgyzstan, 12-year-old Valentina was training in Vale Tudo and Muay Thai kickboxing under coach Pavel Fedotov. In a local contest, Valentina took on an opponent ten years her senior and promptly knocked the 22-year-old out. Fedotov couldn't believe her speed in the ring and gave her the name 'Bullet' to emphasize her lighting quick reflexes.

3 Her Only Non-UFC Loss Was Controversial

Valentino Shevchenko has an impressive 22-3 record in MMA with two of her losses coming in high profile matches against fellow great Amanda Nunes in the UFC. Her other loss happened on her US MMA debut, losing a controversial bout to future UFC title contender Liz Carmouche in the promotion C3 Fights.

Valentina dominated her opponent, but an illegal upkick from Carmouche made her suffer a large cut. It should have been a disqualification victory for Valentina, but the foul wasn't detected, and the ringside doctor decided that Valentina could not continue with the injury. This resulted in a TKO victory for Carmouche by doctor stoppage. Valentina would avenge that loss 9 years later in the main event of a UFC Fight Night.

2 Her Film Credentials

During her time in Kyrgyzstan, Valentina earned an undergraduate degree in film making from the National Academy of Arts. While her film aspirations has taken a back seat due to her MMA career, she did play the main antagonist in the 2020 Netflix sports drama, Bruised starring Halle Berry.

Shevchenko played a Latin American fighter Lucia Chavez, an MMA Champion against whom Berry's down-and-out character gets a title bout. The attention from the movie resulted in Shevchenko being on the cover of Women's Health magazine with Berry as well. The movie had a bit of controversy too, with former UFC fighter Cat Zingano filing a lawsuit against Berry for broken promises regarding a role in the film.

1 The Shevchenko Sisters Created A Unique Record In The UFC

Valentina Shevchenko has a number of records in the UFC - she holds the most consecutive title match victories in a particular division for an active UFC competitor with six in the Women's Flyweight division, the most wins, the most consecutive wins and most knockout wins in the history of that division in addition to being No:1 in the Women's' pound-for-pound rankings.

However, at UFC 255, Valentina and sister Antonina created a unique record - the Shevchenkos became the first sister duo to compete in the same UFC card. Valentina was in the co-main event and defeated Jennifer Maia by decision to retain her Flyweight title. On the preliminary card, Antonina beat Ariane Lipski by TKO to collect the performance of the night award, setting the stage for a strong Shevchenko family performance.