FIGHT NIGHT IN LAS VEGAS: GET READY FOR UFC 213
Brazilian makes 2nd title defense tonight
Amanda Nunes, the newest face of women’s MMA, defends her UFC bantamweight title today against Valentina Shevchenko.
LAS VEGAS, Nev. — The UFC women’s bantamweight title hasn’t stayed anywhere for long since long-reigning champion Ronda Rousey lost it in November 2015 to Albuquerque’s Holly Holm.
The belt had changed hands three times in just over seven months when Amanda Nunes got a hold of it last year, but the ferocious Brazilian doesn’t intend to let it go.
Nunes makes her second title defense today against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 213. The bout is the main event of International Fight Week, the UFC’s annual mixed martial arts showcase.
Nunes (14-4) is in that July spotlight for the second straight year, and she welcomes the scrutiny of a title that essentially makes her the face of women’s MMA.
While she hasn’t reached Rousey’s level of fame, Nunes is headlining her third major payper-view show in a year, and she seems pleased with the resulting bulges in her paychecks. Nunes is moving up the list of the UFC’s most recognizable fighters, and she wants to justify the promotion’s trust in her to deliver a memorable bout — just as she did in December, when she brutally stopped Rousey in her first title defense.
“Lots of people won and lost this belt,” Nunes said, “but I already won it and I kept it in my first fight as the champion. I feel like I can do this longer if I work hard. I think I’m going to be champion for a long time.”
Shevchenko (14-2) is a daunting matchup with her formidable striking game and a tenacity that she showed in the fighters’ first meeting in March 2016. Nunes won by decision, but Shevchenko was much stronger in the third round — and their rematch is a five-rounder.
Right before Nunes and Shevchenko, the UFC will award an interim middleweight title to the winner of 12-1 Yoel Romero’s meeting with Robert Whittaker (19-4).
The showdown will establish a new star in the 185-pound division, which has been in flux for a year since Michael Bisping’s shocking victory over Luke Rockhold. With Bisping, who is nursing a knee injury, sidelined, Romero (12-1) — a 40-year-old Cuban with an eight-bout winning streak and an eye-popping physique even by MMA standards — will get his first UFC title shot.