Valentina Shevchenko

Valentina Shevchenko is a Kyrgyzstani and Peruvian professional mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai fighter who currently competes in the women’s Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A dominant and ferocious competitor in the sport, as of early March in 2023 she was ranked #1 in the women’s flyweight rankings, as well as #3 in the UFC women’s pound-for-pound rankings.

Shevchenko became fascinated by martial arts at an extremely young age, after taking up taekwondo at age 5 and then Muay Thai at age 12. Her kickboxing career commenced at the same time, where she knocked out a 22-year-old opponent, earning her the nickname “Bullet” from her trainer due to her dazzling speed in the ring. From 2003 to 2015, Shevchenko won over 90 matches in Muay Thai and kickboxing, including 8 gold medals at the IFMA world championships. She made her show-stopping UFC debut in 2015 and has since gone on to win the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship and achieve a 23-4 record as of March 2023. Along the way she has won UFC Performance of the Night on multiple occasions and defeated such well-known names as Taila Santos, Jennifer Maia and Liz Carmouche.

A stand-out fan favourite with a staggering following across her social media profiles, Shevchenko is fast-approaching 3 million followers on her Instagram account, and she shows no signs of slowing down. She will no doubt continue to dominate in this most brutal and physically demanding of sports, while serving as an inspiration to young women worldwide.