Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko have one more thing in common.
Besides being two of only three women to hold the UFC flyweight title, Grasso and Shevchenko both suffered hand injuries in their hotly contested rematch at Noche UFC this past September. Grasso retained by the narrowest of margins due to a controversial split draw and afterwards Shevchenko revealed that she’d broken her thumb in the fight.
As it turns out, Grasso also left the fight with a damaged hand and she announced Tuesday via Instagram that she successfully underwent surgery for the injury.
See Grasso’s post here.
In the post, Grasso wrote that she fractured her hand, but didn’t think it was a serious injury at first. However, she later found that she couldn’t return to training, which necessitated surgery.
She added that she will be ready for a trilogy, which both fighters have expressed interest in. Grasso submitted Shevchenko in an upset victory at UFC 285 to claim the flyweight belt, then went another five rounds with her at Noche UFC. The result of the second bout was muddied by a controversial scorecard from judge Mike Bell, who awarded Grasso a 10-8 score in the fifth round, which appeared to be inconsistent with criteria and the scoring of other decisive rounds of the fight.
Several other worthy contenders are waiting in the wings, including Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot, but the timetable for Grasso and Shevchenko’s injuries may lead to the timing working out perfectly for a third title fight.