Maycee Barber arrived at UFC Seattle media day with a clear objective. She wanted attention on her next matchup, but she also wanted the champion’s name attached to her future. To do that, she leaned into Ronda Rousey’s criticism and took a direct verbal swing at Valentina Shevchenko.
Barber said, “Ronda Rousey is the reason why Valentina gets to fight in the UFC. And Valentina’s lack of personality is the reason why Valentina has an OnlyFans.”
The line landed hard because this topic was already active. Shevchenko had already responded publicly to Rousey’s comments, and the discussion around that exchange had been building before Seattle week. It also intersects with the broader conversation around Shevchenko’s OnlyFans move.
Barber says Alexa Grasso comes first, then she wants the belt conversation
Barber said, “I don’t think Dana [White] wants a point fighter as a champion. I’m just guessing. I’m just making an assumption. I think I match up great, but right now my focus is [Alexa] Grasso. After I beat Grasso, then I’ll be talking about how I match up against Valentina. But I think Valentina is getting older, and I think this is the perfect time for me to go and take that belt from her.”
Her roadmap is explicit. She wants to beat Alexa Grasso, then turn that result into a title push against Shevchenko.
This division has been shaped by the Shevchenko-Grasso rivalry, including their UFC 306 chapter and Shevchenko’s own reflections on that trilogy stretch. Barber is trying to place herself as the next chapter in that sequence, and she used UFC Seattle week to make that intention public.
If she wins her next fight, this will read less like fight-week noise and more like an early draft of a championship campaign.
