MMA journalist Ariel Helwani has provided an update on potential illegal knees in the Noche UFC main event between Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko.
Grasso and Shevchenko were rematching in a fight that ended in a draw due to a controversial 10-8 round in the final round. However, after the fight, Shevchenko claims she was hit by illegal knees from Grasso, as the former champ alleged she had one hand down on the ground.
After hearing those comments, Helwani reached out to the NSAC and they confirmed they did look into the illegal knees, but felt Grasso’s knees were clean.
Grasso’s knees were not illegal
An update on whether the much-talked about knees in the Grasso-Shevchenko 2 fight were illegal, per a conversation last night with an NSAC official pic.twitter.com/0mrJ33gErU
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) September 19, 2023
“I did speak to the Nevada State Athletic Commission and an official there told me that it is one hand, so she is correct about that. The hand has to be flat on the mat or weight bearing, and they also told me, in between rounds, they checked the replay, the yellow light was on, they checked the replay, I don’t know if that was noted on the broadcast, I might have missed it,” Helwani said.
“They checked it multiple times and they determined all of the knees hit legally because the hand wasn’t flat, and/or weight bearing, and/or even on the mat when they were landing. Their determination was those were not illegal knees. She’s correct it is one hand on the mat, not two, but flat, weight-bearing and they actually have to land when these things are happening,” Helwani continued.
The good news is the knees were not illegal as it would have only added even more controversy to the Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko rematch.
With the fight ending in the draw, UFC CEO Dana White has made it clear the trilogy should be next, even though Shevchenko will need surgery to repair a fracture in her hand. When the trilogy will happen is uncertain at this time, but will likely be towards the end of the first quarter of 2024 or the early second quarter.
