Mariya Agapova
Wants to fight: [autotag]Shana Dobson[/autotag]
The callout: “I wanna tell Shana Dobson, stop running away from me! Let’s go fight here! I wait for you here!”
The reality: [autotag]Mariya Agapova[/autotag] is now a UFC fighter, and after her impressive debut victory over Hannah Cifers, she’s marked herself out as one to watch in the women’s flyweight division. Smartly, she issued a callout immediately after her win, as she pitched for a fight with Dobson, who she accused of running away from her. But I can’t help but think Agapova should be setting her sights a little higher than a fighter who is 1-3 in her UFC career and suffering a three-fight skid.
Agapova’s performance showed that she could be a legitimate threat at 125 pounds, but it’s way too early to start throwing her in with top contenders, so why not build her up gradually instead? The division isn’t massively deep, so perhaps a tilt at one of the contenders ranked between 10 and 15 makes more sense.
If she wants to test herself and make a real impact, why not make an early statement and challenge the champion’s sister? Agapova vs. Antonina Shevchenko sounds like a much more interesting test for her next assignment. But if the Dobson fight was one the UFC was looking to make before this weekend, it may still be an option they consider for a quick turnaround.
[opinary poll=”mariya-agapova-vs-shanna-dobson_mmajunki-oH7zaV” customer=”mmajunkie”]
Next up: Bantamweight winner makes “Fight Island” request