Tag: Manon Fiorot

Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot: Odds and what to know ahead of UFC 315 co-main event

The opening odds for Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot at UFC 315 are dead even.

Flyweight champion [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] will face a streaking contender in the first title defense of her second reign.

Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot preview

Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC) reclaimed her flyweight title when she defeated Alexa Grasso by unanimous decision in their trilogy bout at UFC 306 this past September.

Unbeaten in the UFC, [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) cemented her spot as No. 1 contender when she defeated former champion Rose Namajunas, and top contender Erin Blanchfield.

Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot odds

According to FanDuel, the odds for flyweight champion Shevchenko and France’s Fiorot have opened up at -113 even.

How to watch Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot at UFC 315

  • When: Saturday, May 10, 2025
  • Where: Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  • Broadcast/streaming: ESPN+ pay-per-view

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 315.

Valentina Shevchenko down for Zhang Weili super fight with UFC 315 win: ‘Why not?’

Valentina Shevchenko is willing to give Zhang Weili a chance to become double champ if she gets past Manon Fiorot at UFC 315.

MONTREAL – [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] is interested in a UFC champion-vs.-champion fight with [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag].

Prior to being booked to defend her women’s flyweight title against Manon Fiorot in the UFC 315 co-main event on May 10 at Bell Centre in Montreal (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+), there was talk of Shevchenko next defending against strawweight titleholder Weili, who made her desire to move up and capture a second belt clear following a February defense over Tatiana Suarez at UFC 312.

The timing seemingly didn’t align next for Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC), but if she manages to retain her belt against Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC), then “The Bullet” welcomes the idea of a super fight against Weili (26-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC).

“I’m open to all opportunities,” Shevchenko told MMA Junkie. “Weili, she showed a lot of heart in her fights and with all the years that she’s put into her performances, she’s showed that she’s a great fighter. Why not? It’s an amazing fight and I think all the fans are going to be excited to see that.”

Following Weili’s upset title defense over Suarez, UFC CEO Dana White said he was beyond impressed with the Chinese champion, and would oblige to he desires. It’s unknown why Weili, No. 2 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s pound-for-pound rankings, isn’t facing No. 3-ranked Shevchenko next, but both fighters and White have publicly stated they are on board.

Weili could very well be waiting in the wings to face the UFC 315 winner, and Shevchenko said it’s currently her only focus to ensure that it’s her, and not Fiorot.

“For me, as I say every time, it’s one step at a time,” Shevchenko said. “I’m not looking to jump in front to do something like that. I am focused on my next fight right now. It’s going to be Manon, and after we’re done with that and I step forward, me and my team are going to think and see what is next for me.”

[lawrence-related id=2803774,2805545]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 315.

UFC 315 video: Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot first faceoff for title clash

Valentina Shevchenko and Manon Fiorot brought the intensity at Wednesday’s first faceoff for their UFC 315 title fight.

MONTREAL – After many words exchanged on social media, [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] and [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] came face to face for the first time Wednesday at the UFC 315 on-sale press conference.

Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC) will put her women’s flyweight title on the line for the first time of her second reign when she takes on streaking contender Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) in the co-headliner of the May 10 card at Bell Centre (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).

Fiorot, No. 3 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s flyweight rankings, made many claims that No. 1 Shevchenko was avoiding sharing the octagon. Shevchenko proved that wrong and looked as intense as ever ahead of a key bout in her career.

Check out the video above to see the staredown between Shevchenko and Fiorot from the UFC 315 press conference at the host venue in Canada.

[lawrence-related id=2803774,2805545]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 315.

Video replay: UFC 315 on-sale press conference from Montreal

UFC 315 headliners Belal Muhammad, Jack Della Maddalena, Valentina Shevchenko and more will attend Wednesday’s press conference.

MONTREAL – The road to UFC 315 will begin Wednesday with the first press conference ahead of the event, which takes place May 10 at Bell Center in Canada (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).

Two championship fights will headline the card, with [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] set to put welterweight gold on the line against [autotag]Jack Della Maddalena[/autotag] in the main event, with women’s flyweight champ [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] facing [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] in the co-main event.

All four fighters will be in attendance at the on-sale press conference at the host venue, as well as Aiemann Zahabi (who fights Jose Aldo) and Jasmine Jasudavicius (who fights Jessica Andrade). UFC executive Dave Shaw will host the festivities.

The press conference is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. ET/8:30 a.m. ET, and you can watch MMA Junkie’s live video stream above.

[lawrence-related id=2805677,2805545]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 315.

Overreaction Time: Ilia Topuria vacates properly, UFC 314 goes big, a UFC screwjob?, more!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” covering a HUGE week of fight bookings by the UFC.

The time for overreacting is here!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” at noon ET/9 a.m. PT as host Simon Samano and MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn debate these “overreactions” on the following topics in mixed martial arts:

  • UFC Seattle: [autotag]Henry Cejudo[/autotag] will only hurt his legacy if he continues fighting.
  • Nobody should have a problem with [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag]’s move to lightweight.
  • UFC 314: [autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag] faces more pressure than [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag].
  • UFC 314: [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] will prove if [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] is legit or all hype.
  • UFC 314: [autotag]Yair Rodriguez[/autotag] is a perfect first test for [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag]’s debut.
  • UFC 315/UFC London: [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag] caught a break, but [autotag]Leon Edwards[/autotag] got shafted.
  • UFC 315: [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] is the best women’s fight we’ll get this year.

Watch the full episode in the video above.

Valentina Shevchenko responds to Manon Fiorot’s UFC title call with retirement stipulation

UFC women’s flyweight champ Valentina Shevchenko issued a challenge of her own in response to potential challenger Manon Fiorot.

UFC women’s flyweight champion [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] issued a retirement challenge in response to [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag]’s recent call for a title fight. She also added a snarky dig.

Friday, Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) expressed her frustration with waiting for a title shot in a message to the champ Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC).

“@BulletValentina stop making people wait!” Fiorot wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Let’s do it soon enough so I can send you to retirement and move on.”

The champ didn’t take long to reply, and she stuck with the retirement theme by challenging Fiorot to put her career on the line when they meet in the octagon.

“You lose – you retire Deal?!!” Shevchenko wrote on X.

The retirement stipulation for the fight was a strong enough challenge, but Shevchenko added a snarky remark to punctuate her reply, calling Fiorot an “ill-mannered first-grader.”

Shevchenko recognizes Fiorot is likely her next challenger after defeating Alexa Grasso at UFC 306 to reclaim the women’s flyweight title. Fiorot, who is undefeated through seven UFC bouts, weighed in as the backup for that fight.

The UFC has not officially announced plans for Shevchenko or Fiorot’s next bout.

[lawrence-related id=2784252,2772494,2770617]

Manon Fiorot vows to retire Valentina Shevchenko in potential UFC title fight

Manon Fiorot is getting impatient with her wait for a UFC title shot.

[autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] is getting impatient with her wait for a UFC title shot.

Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) has steadily knocked off contenders while the title fight trilogy between [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] and Alexa Grasso played out. Now that Shevchenko has emerged with the women’s flyweight belt, Fiorot is eager to finally book her first championship opportunity.

The Frenchwoman took to social media on Friday and made a pointed callout at Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC), declaring that she will take the belt and send “The Bullet” into retirement from the sport (via X):

Stop making people wait! Let’s do it soon enough so I can send you to retirement and move on.

Fiorot, No. 3 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s flyweight rankings, has yet to be beaten under the UFC banner. The 34-year-old has already defeated Erin Blanchfield, Rose Namajunas, Mayra Bueno Silva and more during her run, and is looking to climb the ultimate prize of UFC gold.

In a recent interview on “The Ariel Helwani Show,” No. 1-ranked Shevchenko said she is open to a fight with Fiorot, who weighed in as the backup fighter when Shevchenko reclaimed the 125-pound belt from Grasso at UFC 306 in September.

[lawrence-related id=2784252,2772494]

Erin Blanchfield curious to see how Valentina Shevchenko deals with Manon Fiorot’s size

Erin Blanchfield likes Manon Fiorot’s chances against UFC champ Valentina Shevchenko.

[autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag] likes [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag]’s chances against UFC women’s flyweight champion [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag].

Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) is expected to be Shevchenko’s next title challenger after going unbeaten in the octagon, including a win over Blanchfield in the UFC on ESPN 54 main event in March.

Having felt Fiorot’s strength and failing to take her down in their fight, Blanchfield (13-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) expects the French fighter’s size to pose problems for Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC).

“I think Manon could do very well,” Blanchfield told MMA Junkie. “I could even see her beating Valentina. I could see Valentina winning, but I think Manon can use her size. I think she’s a very big flyweight, and she knows how to use her range and like her length. I think Valentina is more like dynamic and has more skills.

“So, I’m curious how Valentina is going to deal with her size because I know in the past, let’s say with like Taila (Santos), I remember her complaining about how big Taila is, and I feel like Manon’s significantly bigger. So yeah, I think it’s a good matchup, and I’m curious to see how it goes.”

Since losing to Fiorot, Blanchfield rebounded with a five-round co-main event win over Rose Namajunas this past Saturday at UFC Fight Night 246.

“I feel like I was able to utilize my striking better. That’s something obviously I had a lot of focus on after my last fight,” Blanchfield said of her win over Namajunas. “I feel like I was able to show a little bit of improvement there. Obviously there’s room for more, but it’s only been a couple of months.

“So, I feel like I was able to definitely show that to myself and win those championship rounds, too. I feel like that was a big thing. Even though losing those first two rounds, I was able to come back and sweep the scorecards on the rest of the rounds.”

[lawrence-related id=2784166,2729477,2728474,2729315]

Chael Sonnen: Valentina Shevchenko missed mark by not mentioning Manon Fiorot after UFC 306 title win

Chael Sonnen thinks Valentina Shevchenko made a mistake by not acknowledging Manon Fiorot after UFC 306.

[autotag]Chael Sonnen[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] made a mistake by not acknowledging [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] after UFC 306.

Shevchenko (24-4-1 MMA, 13-3-1 UFC) regained her flyweight title with a dominant decision win over Alexa Grasso (16-4-1 MMA, 8-4-1 UFC) in Saturday’s co-main event at Sphere in Las Vegas. Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) weighed in as a backup for the fight, but her services weren’t needed. Although Shevchenko dismissed a fourth fight with Grasso next, Sonnen would have liked to see her address Fiorot.

“Can I tell you what one of my least favorite parts (of UFC 306) was? It’s very simple,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” alongside Daniel Cormier. “There was an alternate that flew in and weighed in in case anything happened with the Grasso-Shevchenko fight, Fiorot. At a minimum, it would have been nice if Valentina mentioned her. I feel like it’s clear that Fiorot is next. She was almost that night. And after the fight, Valentina went in a different direction. She wanted to thank Hunter Campbell and Dana White as opposed to call out an opponent.

“You were a main event here at this very event one year ago against the same opponent for the same title then they have demoted you to a co-main event. At some point you’ve got to wake up. The crowd wasn’t thrilled with this match. If they were to do it again next year, it’s going to come lower and lower. I felt for Fiorot. To come over there, get licensed, go through all the medicals, go through the training camp, the weight cut, and there’s no opportunity, which means there’s not a very big check to split up with your team. At a minimum, you could have had a callout. On a human level, to a degree, it bothered me.”

Unbeaten in the octagon, Fiorot cemented herself as No. 1 contender after a main event win over Erin Blanchfield at UFC on ESPN 54 in March.

[lawrence-related id=2772067,2771733,2769582,2770617]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.

Manon Fiorot tabbed as Alexa Grasso-Valentina Shevchenko trilogy backup at UFC 306, coach says

The UFC 306 co-main event has an insurance policy in Manon Fiorot, who is getting the backup spot she wanted.

The UFC 306 co-main event has an insurance policy in [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag].

Fiorot’s coach, Aldric Cassata, told French media outlet Boxemag.com on Wednesday that his fighter has been tabbed as the backup for the trilogy between women’s flyweight champion Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko on Sept. 14 at Sphere in Las Vegas.

“Manon is officially (planned as) the backup for the belt,” Cassata said, although the UFC has yet to make an announcement. “She will be in Vegas.”

Cassata also confirmed Fiorot’s status to MMA Junkie’s Farah Hannoun.

Fiorot, 34, carries a 12-1 overall record after winning 12 fights in a row since her lone defeat to Leah McCourt in her professional debut in 2018, including a 7-0 mark in the UFC. Fiorot’s push for a title shot gained major traction after her two most recent wins against former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas last September and most recently a clean sweep in a headliner with Erin Blanchfield this past March.

Back in April, shortly after her win over Blanchfield, Fiorot said in an interview with MMA Junkie that she would prefer being a backup to Grasso vs. Shevchenko rather than accept another fight while waiting for the trilogy to happen.

“If I have to choose, the best choice for me is to be the backup on the fight,” Fiorot said through an interpreter. “I think it’s a good thing if someone, Valentina or Alexa, have an injury or miss weight. I think the best choice for me now is to be backup for this fight so I can see the fight and perhaps do a faceoff after against the winner. … I think I deserve it.”

Apparently so does the UFC.

[lawrence-related id=2760848,2745933]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Noche UFC.