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Surging flyweight contender Ariane Lipski believes that if she manages to get a win over Antonina Shevchenko at UFC 255, she will be able to get under Valentina Shevchenko's skin ahead of the latter's title defense against Jennifer Maia.
Valentina's sister Antonina Shevchenko and Ariane Lipski are set to lock horns in a preliminary card encounter at UFC 255 on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Later that night, Valentina Shevchenko will defend her title against Maia in the co-main event. Ahead of the event, Lipski stated that she wants to get inside Valentina's head by beating her sister on the same night.
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Ariane Lipski said that if she manages to beat Antonina, it will have an impact on the latter's sister. Lipski said that she wants to mess with Valentina's head and expressed the desire to fight her soon inside the octagon.
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“They said in an interview that they were used to fighting on the same night in Muay Thai tournaments, but it’s different now. The UFC, that’s a global pressure. I believe it will impact (Valentina), she will know, especially depending on how the fight ends. It will mess with Valentina. I’ll be marked in Valentina’s memory, and sooner or later we will meet.”
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In her last fight, Lipski scored an incredible first-round submission victory over Luana Carolina at the Fight island in Abu Dhabi. However, Lipski said that she was chasing a knockout in the fight and is eager to show how much she has evolved on her feet against Antonina Shevchenko in their upcoming clash.
“It’s a good match-up for me. Antonina is an experienced athlete, a striker, has world titles in muay thai, but I’m more experienced in MMA. She is older than me, but I’m getting more and more mature. I’m 26 now, I have 18 MMA fights, and I have my team behind me. No matter how many titles she has, no matter her age and her experience, I’m confident. She’s a striker and so am I, but I have jiu-jitsu, too. She has more things to worry about.”
Ariane Lipski looking to jump the queue and earn a title shot next
Ariane Lipski said that if she manages to register a win against Antonina this weekend, she will either get a crack at the flyweight title or be booked to fight a top-five opponent next. It's exactly what she's looking to ensure come fight night.
“The last fighter that beat Antonina was a top-three in the division, Katlyn Chookagian, and she’s also fighting on the same day. A dominant win over Antonina will show I’m ready for a top-five, and that’s what we’ll ask for (after the fight).”
Lipski has a 13-5 professional record and is 2-2 inside the octagon. She dropped her first couple of fights inside the octagon against Joane Calderwood and Molly McCann respectively before going on to win the next two fights against Isabela de Padua and Luana Carolina.
