Former title challenger Taila Santos has claimed that Valentina Shevchenko is ‘scared’ of a rematch. She also alleged that the UFC told her Shevchenko was ‘running’ from fighting her again.
Reigning women’s flyweight queen Shevchenko was last seen in action against top-ranked contender Santos in Jun. at UFC 275 in Singapore. Santos put in an impressive performance to give the dominant champion a tough challenge. After an accidental clash of heads, Santos eventually got edged out by Shevchenko in a controversial split decision that many felt could have gone either way.
Taila Santos says Valentina Shevchenko is ‘scared’ of losing her belt
Following the heated outcome, Santos rallied for an immediate title rematch with Shevchenko. She reiterated her stance to get another chance at the gold in a recent interview with MMA Fighting.
“All the girls say Valentina is a monster, but I’ve been saying for a while she has no ground game. I showed that there was no reason to fear [her]. I knew she wouldn’t accept a rematch after that fight. I called her out anyway, but I knew she wouldn’t take the risk of losing her belt. She wouldn’t rematch me after I showed she was no big deal. She’s scared.”
Santos claims Shevchenko is ‘running’ from the rematch
Santos further shared that her team was working hard to get the pairing with Shevchenko, but faced resistance from the champion’s camp. She claimed UFC told her manager that ‘Bullet’ was ‘running’ from the rematch.
“We’ve been asking for fights over and over again — asking for the rematch, really. Tiago [Okamura, manager] spoke with Mick [Maynard] and the UFC, informed them I was well and training. They even said that Valentina was running. She asked them for fights, but not against me. I’m training and waiting, but it’s been hard to get a fight. I wanted the rematch, but Valentina didn’t agree to it. Based on her social media, she’s just traveling.”
Taila Santos was in recovery after undergoing surgery for the broken orbital bone that she suffered in her last bout. Shevchenko has currently no fight lined up and is yet to respond.
