![]() But with Shevchenko, every brutal KO is applauded, and every technical virtuoso performance is recognized as such without any caveats, as they should be. Her diverse skill set is hailed while Johnson’s was attributed to the limitations of his opponents more so than his sublime talent. But while Demetrious Johnson was seemingly blamed for his dominance over opposition that he made look average, Shevchenko’s greatness is celebrated. Shevchenko and Johnson both lost to fighters who are considered the consensus greatest of all time at 135, Amanda Nunes and Dominick Cruz, but then took their performances to another level at flyweight. The same was true for Demetrious Johnson, who was a top contender at bantamweight but after failing to capture the big one, he dropped down to 125, where he made history. And each win is a safe deposit into her legacy, with history recording how the only adversity she has faced was in another division which seems like a lifetime ago. Valentina Shevchenko has been nothing but money since dropping down to flyweight, cashing in one flawless victory after another. In fact, the “lack of stiff competition” criticism seems to be much more applicable to Valentina Shevchenko’s flyweight run thus far, yet she has somehow slipped these jabs against her legacy and has only been swarmed by the praise she deserves. Of course, as I have addressed in a past series dissecting Johnson’s legacy, these claims do not hold up to heavy scrutiny and is actually one of those things that get repeated over time enough that people just call it the truth.ĭemetrious Johnson fought much tougher competition than he was given credit for, names like Joseph Benavidez, Henry Cejudo, Kyoji Horiguchi, a prime John Dodson, and others. If there is one narrative that followed Demetrious Johnson, it is that he did not face strong enough competition, and as a result, the brilliance he displayed in the flyweight division was somewhat minimized. Right now, Valentina Shevchenko is on track to becoming the Demetrious Johnson of the women’s flyweight division and is currently enjoying a heightened level of appreciation than Mighty Mouse did. At 32 years old and currently at her peak, Shevchenko likely has several years of ascendant performances left in her, and if she remains active, it is very possible that she could break the record for most successful title defenses in the women’s divisions. Valentina Shevchenko is easily one of the most dominant champions in the UFC, and she is well on her way to becoming one of the most dominant champions of all time.
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