The first defense of Valentina Shevchenko’s flyweight crown will come at UFC 238 in Chicago, with Jessica Eye making her first UFC title bid.
Valentina Shevchenko’s inaugural defense of her women’s flyweight title will come in Chicago. At UFC 238, hosted in the Windy City, Shevchenko will meet top flyweight contender Jessica Eye. ESPN was the first to break news of the pairing, which has subsequently been verified by multiple outlets. The event airs exclusively on PPV in North America.
Shevchenko (16-3) returns to the octagon after claiming the 125lb crown against Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 231 in Toronto this past December. The fight was just her second in the UFC’s flyweight division, after spending the bulk of her career at bantamweight (early on, she did dip down to 125lbs outside the promotion). Shevchenko lost a title challenge for the bantamweight title against Amanda Nunes at UFC 215, which sparked the move to her current home.
Jessica Eye (14–6 (1)), meanwhile, has won all three of her fights in the UFC’s flyweight division. After starting at 125lbs earlier in her career, she spent most of her time at bantamweight, coming into the UFC in 2013 but struggling, hitting a stretch of four straight losses from 2015-2016. That prompted her move to flyweight, where she defeated Kalindra Faria, Jessica-Rose Clark, and most recently, fellow contender Katlyn Chookagian.
UFC 238 takes place June 8, 2019 in Chicago, IL. The card has not yet had a main event confirmed.
