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Women’s Flyweight
2. Valentina Shevchenko (21-3) [1]
Jessica Andrade was supposed to provide Shevchenko with her most difficult test since winning the vacant flyweight crown against Joanna Jedrzejczyk in December 2018. Instead, “Bullet” rolled past the Brazilian, landing seven takedowns and finishing the fight in Round 2 with elbows from the mounted crucifix position. That makes five successful title defenses and seven consecutive victories overall for Shevchenko, who will next face Lauren Murphy in the co-main event at 266 on Sept. 25.2. Juliana Velasquez (12-0) [2]
Faced with a game challenger in Denise Kielholtz in the Bellator 262 headliner, Velasquez relied on her jab and superior reach to capture a closely-contested split-decision triumph on July 16 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. It was the seventh triumph for Velasquez under the Bellator banner — and arguably her most difficult to date. The 34-year-old Team Nogueira shouldn’t lack for interesting matchups in the coming month: Rematches with either Kielholtz and Ilima-Lei Macfarlane could both be appealing, as is a fresh showdown with former two-division UFC title challenger Liz Carmouche.3. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-1) [3]
For five rounds, Macfarlane struggled to navigate the size and strength advantages of Juliana Velasquez en route to a unanimous decision loss in the Bellator 254 headliner on Dec. 10 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. That ended the championship reign of the Hawaiian, who captured the Bellator’s inaugural 125-pound crown and defended it four times, all while becoming one of the California-based promotion’s biggest stars. Considering those credentials, Macfarlane may not be far off from another title shot — and an immediate return date with Velasquez might not be that farfetched.4. Liz Carmouche (16-7) [4]
Carmouche produced the type of performance at Bellator 262 that will make it difficult to deny her a title shot, as she dispatched the previously-unbeaten Kana Watanabe with punches 35 seconds into their co-headlining encounter at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., on June 25. In earning her first TKO victory since July 2013, “Girl-Rilla” improved to 3-0 under the Bellator banner, adding Watanabe to a list of victims that includes Vanessa Porto and DeAnna Bennett..5. Jessica Andrade (21-9) [5]
Andrade had no answers for Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 261, as she was taken down repeatedly and finished with elbows from the mounted crucifix position in the second-round of their flyweight title bout on April 24. The former strawweight champion’s next move should be interesting. She has lost three of her last four UFC appearances, including setbacks to newly-crowned strawweight queen Rose Namajunas and ex-champ Weili Zhang. Next, Andrade will square off against Cynthia Calvillo in a flyweight bout at UFC 266.6. Katlyn Chookagian (16-4) [6]
Chookagian’s pace and volume carried her to a slightly contentious unanimous decision triumph over Viviane Araujo in a featured matchup at UFC 262 on May 15. Regardless of the nature of the win, Chookagian has now won three of her last four outings since falling to Valentina Shevchneko in a flyweight title bout at UFC 247 in February 2020. That’s enough to keep “Blonde Fighter” relevant in the division, though another title bout could be difficult to come by as long as Shevchenko is champ.7. Lauren Murphy (15-4) [7]
Murphy has a knack for prevailing in closely-contested fights, as she once again showed in a split-decision triumph over Joanne Calderwood at UFC 263 on June 12. The former Invicta FC title holder has won five straight contests within the Las Vegas-based promotion and could be in line for a shot against reigning 125-pound queen Valentina Shevchenko in the near future.8. Vanessa Porto (22-9) [8]
Given an opportunity to make a statement against Liz Carmouche in her Bellator debut on April 9, Porto fell flat, losing a lackluster unanimous decision in a matchup of flyweight contenders. The Bellator 256 defeat halted a four-bout winning streak for the former Invicta champ, who was making her first appearance since November 2019.9. Jennifer Maia (19-7-1) [9]
One bout removed from a title loss to reigning 125-pound queen Valentina Shevchenko, Maia battled through a competitive matchup with Jessica Eye to capture a unanimous decision triumph at UFC 264 on July 10. The former Invicta FC titlist is 4-3 in the Octagon, with additional triumphs over Joanne Calderwood, Roxanne Modafferi and Alexis Davis.10. Joanne Calderwood (15-6) [10]
Calderwood had a chance to state her case for a title shot with a win against Lauren Murphy at UFC 263 but ultimately came up short, losing a narrow split-decision at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz., on June 12. Calderwood has been up and down since 2019, alternating wins and losses in her last six promotional appearances.Other Contenders: Cynthia Calvillo, Jessica Eye, Viviane Araujo, Roxanne Modafferi, Andrea Lee.
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