Valentina Shevchenko responds to critics of UFC Uruguay performance

Valentina Shevchenko said she heard the boos of the fans at UFC Uruguay during her main event fight against Liz Carmouche, but she wouldn’t let the groaning fans make her deviate from her gameplan.

The UFC women’s flyweight champion spoke at the post-fight press conference following the event and discussed the booing fans, telling those who didn’t enjoy her performance they should watch the fights more carefully.

“They still have fresh memories of my knockout two months ago (over Jessica Eye at UFC 238) and wanted to see another,” Shevchenko said. “Inside the Octagon sometimes you do a knockout, sometimes you don’t. If fans started watching fights more carefully they would see very beautiful technique, timing, and speed. That’s in all martial arts. It’s not all about crazy exchanges where you can be hit. It’s about much more.”

Shevchenko said she heard the fans grumbling in the stands, but said that she needed to stick with her gameplan because she did not want to risk losing to Carmouche.

“(The boos are) affecting but at the same time you cannot listen too much,” Shevchenko said. “Fighting an opponent by Liz, if you fight with a lot of emotion she will catch you and put you down. You have to be very smart at fighting. Of course it affects me. But what would be better, make the fans feel good or lose your belt?”

Shevchenko also took a slight jab at Carmouche, saying it takes two to tango to make an exciting fight for the fans. Carmouche told reporters she thought Shevchenko would be more aggressive, but the champ says the same thing about her opponent.

“If she wanted to be aggressive to show a good fight for the fans, she could have been more aggressive. But she wasn’t,” Shevchenko said. “I saw in her previous fights, she was waiting for her opponents to start losing their minds and go crazy attacking. That’s when she takes them down. I knew that she had a strong wrestling game and I wanted to show I was stronger than her. I was ready for her. Nothing took me by surprise. I was just doing my job.”

What did you think of the UFC Uruguay main event between Valentina Shevchenko and Liz Carmouche?