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\u201cBullet\u201d won her first UFC title in December 2018 and defended gold less than a year ago. Between two separate title reigns, Shevchenko has defended her belt an outstanding nine times. Even late into her 30s, Shevchenko\u2019s grasp on her title has remained ironclad. She has the third most UFC wins in the history of women\u2019s MMA, alongside another dozen longevity records from her years of dominance.<\/p>\n
How much respect and leverage does all that excellence buy? Not much, as it turns out. Last month, news broke that Shevchenko was injured, and that she was opting to vacate the title rather than hold up the division. As a result, UFC 332 was headlined by Wang Cong<\/strong> versus Shevchenko\u2019s planned opponent, Natalia Silva<\/strong>, with a newly vacant belt on the line. Silva walked away as the new champion, while Shevchenko will get the next title shot \u2026 maybe.<\/p>\n Now, a new report from Ariel Helwani revealed that Shevchenko\u2019s title vacation may not have been so voluntary. In fact, she may have been pressured to drop her belt solely because the UFC 332 card couldn\u2019t survive without a title fight on top. Once Paulo Costa<\/strong> negotiations fell apart, stripping Shevchenko was suddenly the only option for a title fight<\/p>\n \u201cDoes she have a lingering injury, yes,\u201d he explained (via BloodyElbow). \u201cIf the UFC would have had another title fight for October 3, would she still be champion, yes. Did she willingly give up that belt, no. Absolutely not. They needed a title fight. They said we\u2019ll do right by you when you come back, you\u2019ll get the title fight.\u201d<\/p>\n