UFC 281: Molly McCann believes Valentina Shevchenko's last performance will push her "to do something special"

Molly McCann is scheduled to fight Erin Blanchfield in the UFC 281 prelims at Madison Square Garden this weekend. 'Meatball' was recently asked if flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko had the same air of invincibility about her after her last performance.

Unlike the rest of her dominant title run, Shevchenko barely managed to reel in a controversial split decision victory over Santos at UFC 275. According to McCann, 'Bullet' is beatable like the rest of us and it is natural for her to decline with age.

That being said, McCann isn't saying that Shevchenko is on the decline. According to 'Meatball', the champion will be motivated to do something special in her next outing after being fallible in the last one.

The 32-year-old told Andrew Whitelaw in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA:

"Everyone can be beat. We've all got two arms and two legs. And when you've been on the top for that long, it might be hard to stay motivated or to keep on striving to push forward. But she always finds a way. That's the good thing about Valentina. So, with age you should normally decline. I'm not saying that she is declining, because she's probably come in next fight and do something special because of the last performance. That'll motivate her."

Watch Molly McCann's comments below (4:45):

During a quickfire session, McCann also named Shevchenko as the fighter with the highest IQ on the UFC women's roster (11:05).

McCann is riding a three-fight winning streak, topped off by two spinning elbow knockouts, going into UFC 281. Herself being a better striker, 'Meatball' hopes her opponent will look to put on a show at MSG (2:23) instead of merely trying to lie on top of her.

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Conor McGregor has predicted Molly McCann to beat Valentina Shevchenko

While Molly McCann has already become a star with the arrival of Paddy Pimblett, UFC 281 will be the first pay-per-view appearance for 'Meatball'. Going into her debut in the Mecca of combat sports, Madison Square Garden, McCann messaged fellow countryman Conor McGregor, the biggest superstar in the sport.

McGregor replied with a motivational message, predicting McCann to "sleep" Valentina Shevchenko on her way to the UFC women's flyweight title. Both hailing from the feeder league Cage Warriors, 'Notorious' also advised 'Meatball' not to forget her roots:

"You are the UFC women's champion on her way. You're going to sleep Valentina [Shevchenko]... Enjoy your newfound fame, keep the team tight and know the limits with the time you give. Just consider it a new job somewhat...train for real as if it's Cage Warriors still because that's what it is and that's what we are, Cage Warriors."

Watch Molly McCann read out McGregor's message below:

Viewers in India can watch the LIVE coverage of UFC 281 on SONY TEN 2 (English), SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) & SONY TEN 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels at 8:30 am IST on November 13, 2022.