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#4 - Valentina Shevchenko
Valentina Shevchenko is the reigning UFC women's flyweight champion. The southpaw holds the record for the most consecutive wins (7) and most knockout wins in the division's history (3). She defeated three former champions of the UFC on her way to MMA glory - Holly Holm, Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Jessica Andrade.
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There is no denying the fact that Valentina 'Bullet' Shevchenko is one of the finest southpaws in all of MMA. The dancing demoness from Kyrgyzstan executes striking techniques with unbelievable precision and ice-cold determination.
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As a southpaw, the right hook and left kick are perhaps Shevchenko’s most effective weapons against orthodox opponents. It is just difficult for orthodox fighters to see them coming, which reduces their reaction time as well. The trajectory of her lead hook is mostly hidden by her opponents' leading jab, which is basically the beauty of a southpaw.
Also read: "He wants MMA, he's gonna get it" - Conor McGregor promises to showcase a 'lot of weapons' in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
#3 - Nate Diaz
Nate Diaz is one of the most skilful southpaws in the UFC and he has proven it even against opponents otherwise superior to him. His southpaw stance and long reach enables him to unsettle his opponents even with their guard up. Against aggressive strikers, Nate is good at leaning back into counter attacks with a jab, a check hook or a 'Stockton slap'.
Nate Diaz is also on-point with his defensive game, which is evident when he rolls his shoulders to make strikes deviate off him. Offensively, the Stockton native has a deadly left cross that puts a lot of orthodox fighters in trouble. As was evident in his fight against Leon Edwards, a single landing rocks his rivals like they've been hit by a baseball bat.
His left hook tearing straight through his opponent's guard has many times proven a factor in him establishing his dominance inside the octagon. A good example of this was at UFC 196, although Conor McGregor was tired for the most part without absorbing any strikes.
However, the moment Nate tagged the Irishman with his left cross, the former UFC champ was rattled. Despite leaving his lead leg vulnerable against kicks in his southpaw stance, Nate has forced his rivals to keep guessing what's coming.
