Valentina Shevchenko recalls mindset preparing for trilogy fight against Alexa Grasso at Noche UFC 306: "I had to do my job the best way"

Valentina Shevchenko recently recalled her mindset when preparing for her trilogy bout against Alexa Grasso at Noche UFC 306. She noted having a very tactical approach to the trilogy to ensure that the outcome wasn't the same as their rematch.

The women's flyweight clash served as the co-main event of the special Mexican Independence Day pay-per-view at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout was booked for a third time after their rematch the previous year ended in a split draw. This time, there was no uncertainty as Shevchenko earned a dominant unanimous decision win to regain the flyweight championship.

During her latest appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, the reigning women's flyweight champion recounted her preparation for the event. Shevchenko mentioned that it was quite difficult because she was fighting Grasso on Mexican Independence Day for a second time and wanted to ensure she wasn't on the receiving end of another controversial decision due to the judges having a bias toward Grasso:

"I was a lot of work, I would say... the longest training camp, the longest preparation... All the training plans, I knew that I had to do things and I had to do my job in the best way. And yes, going into the third fight, second Mexican Independence Day, I knew it's going to be even harder than the first time, so yeah, we just [were] training a lot, thinking a lot and yeah, the most important [thing] is the belt is back where it belongs."

Check out Valentina Shevchenko's comments below:

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Valentina Shevchenko opens up about the pressure of fighting Alexa Grasso on Mexican Independence Day

In addition to describing her mindset ahead of her trilogy bout against Alexa Grasso, Valentina Shevchenko opened up about the added pressure of fighting her on Mexican Independence Day.

During the aforementioned appearance, Shevchenko recalled a conversation with her coach and mentioned that she had to put on the most dominant performance possible to avoid being robbed of a decision:

"My coach said, 'Yeah, if it's happened and it happened for the [fight] last year, you have to make it that no one will try to do that again, so it's gonna be one-sided [win].'... I knew It's going to be hard for me to fight not only against your opponent but also to fight against everything. And yeah, no matter what I'm a fighter, I'm a champion. Harder I see my challenge in front of me, it just put me in the killing mode."

Check out Valentina Shevchenko's comments below: