It may have taken five grueling rounds and a few moments in danger, but Valentina Shevchenko got the job done. For the seventh consecutive time, “Bullet” successfully defended the UFC women’s 125-pound title, this time against Taila Santos via split decision.
Normally, Shevchenko would do her trademark victory dance after the Octagon interviews, but this time she didn’t. One reporter took notice and asked her about it during her post-fight scrum, and apparently, there is quite a serious reason behind it.
“Coming into the fight, I was injured. My foot was injured. And all week, fight week, the UFC Performance Institute physical therapist was working on my foot to get it back into the best shape,” she told reporters.