“Once she was retired, I lost interest in that" - Valentina Shevchenko gives honest take on facing Amanda Nunes for a trilogy 

UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko spoke with MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn ahead of her huge clash next week.

‘Bullet’ puts her title on the line against former UFC women’s strawweight champion Zhang Weili. This clash sees the women’s No.1 and No.2 ranked pound-for-pound fighters take on each other. However, there is another big fight that could take place soon.

Bohn wanted Shevchenko’s thoughts on potentially moving up and facing Amanda Nunes for a third time. Shevchenko is 0-2 against the Brazilian, and there are rumors that the former women’s bantamweight champion is returning to the UFC.

Shevchenko didn’t turn down the fight and wanted to see how things would play out:

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“For a long time, it was the only reason why I would return to the 135, it was just one name. Finish business with what I had with Amanda. Once she was retired, I lost interest in that, and now, let’s see. The rumors that she’s unretired but let’s see if it’s a reality.”

Bohn claimed that the UFC’s plan was for the current bantamweight champion, Kayla Harrison, to take on Nunes in January. Shevchenko finished off by saying that a lot of answers would be provided soon.

Check out Valentina Shevchenko’s comments below (09:15):

Nunes retired in 2023, but the Brazilian seems ready for another crack at the division. Nunes and Shevchenko are considered as two of the greatest female MMA stars of all-time and a trilogy would be a blockbuster fight if it can be set up.

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Kayla Harrison plays down Amanda Nunes rivalry

While Valentina Shevchenko has her sights on defending her crown against Zhang Weili, Kayla Harrison has similar plans if she does fight Amanda Nunes.

Some quarters have tried to hype up the rivalry between Harrison and Nunes. However, the American turned that storyline down and heaped praise on her rival.

In an interview with MMA Junkie in September, Harrison said that Nunes was a major reason for her to move to Florida and she even trained a bit with the Brazilian.

The current champion added that there is no animosity between the pair and it would be two of the best fighting in the octagon:

"I have nothing personal against her. I think she's a great fighter, I think she's a great champion, I think she's a good person, a good mother. This isn't going to be like a Colby [Covington]-[Jorge] Masvidal. This is going to be like, hey, these are the two best fighters in the world."

Edited by Saiyed Adeem Karim