For a fighter to be one that Valentina Shevchenko enjoys watching, they need to have more than just a style of fighting.
Shevchenko will look for her sixth women’s flyweight title defense when she defends her strap against Lauren Murphy at UFC 268 later this month.
Appearing on The MMA Hour on Wednesday, Shevchenko was asked by Ariel Helwani who her favorite fighters to watch were. Although she initially avoided the question by stating that she likes anyone that fights, she would eventually go into detail with some names.
So who are the flyweight queen’s favorite fighters to watch as of now?
“If you’re speaking about fighters, I like universal fighters who can do everything,” Shevchenko said. “Striking, grappling. I think for example, Kamaru Usman is a bright example of it.
“Israel [Adesanya], Jon Jones. Who else? Fighters who have a lot of character, charisma. Jorge Masvidal, Nick Diaz, he’s fighting on the same card [as me].
Shevchenko: Fighters Need Whole Package
However, while Shevchenko likes to watch those names, another prerequisite of hers is that fighters combine fighting as well as a personality.
“You can’t just say a fighter because of his fight style because when you are choosing your favorite fighter, you like his or her charisma,” Shevchenko added. “This is a combination of everything — how everyone can bring out their fight style and their style of acting or what they’re doing before the fight, in the fight, after the fight.
“It’s like a very good combination of everything.”
You can watch the full interview below:
