Valentina Shevchenko lays out post-surgery timeline for Grasso trilogy

Valentina Shevchenko doesn’t anticipate to be out for lengthy.

The previous UFC girls’s flyweight champion suffered a fracture on her proper hand in her championship rematch in opposition to Alexa Grasso in the principle occasion of final Saturday’s Noche UFC at T-Cellular Enviornment in Las Vegas. Shevchenko expects to get surgical procedure subsequent week in Las Vegas or Los Angeles and desires to get going together with her restoration.

“Proper now we’re talking about scheduling it subsequent week and I hope to have it the earlier, the higher for me as a result of the earlier I’ve the surgical procedure, the earlier the restoration will begin and the earlier I come again to the motion,” Shevchenko instructed MiddleEasy.

Shevchenko (23-5 MMA, 12-4 UFC) and Grasso (17-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) fought to a cut up draw at Noche UFC. Previous to that, they fought in March the place Grasso submitted Shevchenko, ending her historic reign at 125 kilos. UFC CEO Dana White not too long ago stated a trilogy bout will be anticipated subsequent for each fighters.

Shevchenko says the hand will take lower than a few months to get well from surgical procedure, and he or she must be totally match to battle Grasso once more someday within the early a part of 2024.

“My understanding is like two or six weeks, one thing like that, in a solid, however I nonetheless can do train and preserve my form simply no hand,” Shevchenko stated. “After that, it’s going to be restoration and as I’m instructed, three or 4 months in full motion, so it doesn’t sound that scary.”

Though Shevchenko is assured she’ll be again totally match quickly sufficient, there’s at all times a chance of problems with a restoration from surgical procedure alongside the best way.

The 35-year-old is staying optimistic, but when one thing does lengthen her restoration, she could be high quality with Grasso combating in opposition to one other challenger as she recovers.

“My understanding that it doesn’t matter what occurs, my subsequent battle goes to be for the title, undoubtedly,” Shevchenko stated. “It’s what it needs to be and what it must be. But when one thing occurs and (my restoration) is longer, I don’t wish to maintain the division.

“I don’t wish to say, ‘No, it’s important to await me.’ If I had been in that place, it could be backwards. I wouldn’t wish to really feel that. I wouldn’t wish to keep and sit once I might battle, and I might use my time as a fighter. We as fighters might have a very long time or a short while in combating life. Me being on the opposite facet, I wouldn’t wish to be in that state of affairs. That’s why I don’t need her to really feel within the place that she will be able to transfer, however she has to remain and sit and do nothing. Let’s hope I heal up in a short time, and we do the trilogy battle subsequent.”