Erin Blanchfield has her eyes set on a title shot with whoever wins in the fight between Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso after she dominated Jessica Andrade in her biggest UFC victory to date.
Sunday 19 February 2023 08:36, UK
Erin Blanchfield blazed past former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade with a second-round submission via rear-naked choke in Saturday night's main event of the evening. She now has her eyes set on a shot at the flyweight title.
Blanchfield showed no hesitation when former UFC lightweight contender Paul Felder asked the question of who the 23-year-old wanted next after submitting No.3 ranked Jessica Andrade 1:37 seconds into the second round.
"Give me the winner of Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso next," Blanchfield said, alluding to the scheduled March 4 title bout.
Felder then asked "and how's that gonna play out if you get it?"
Blanchfield replied: "I'm going to win the title and be the UFC champion."
Shevchenko has had an uncontested reign in the 125lb division since its inception, successfully defending her title six times and is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak including victories over Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Andrade, Lauren Murphy and, most recently, Taila Santos.
Grasso may prove to be a more grittier battle, but Blanchfield believes the stars are aligned for a matchup with Shevchenko, and more intriguingly, history for herself.
She said: "I would definitely prefer Shevchenko. I think she beats Grasso. I think Grasso is a very tough fighter, but I want to be the one to take that title from [Shevchenko]."
Can she do it? Well, the American grappling specialist has already proved how ruthless her ground and pound skills are, and how it can render opposing fighters powerless in moments, as Meatball Molly McCann found out first-hand.
Blanchfield has no qualms on doing that again should she have to fight against the reigning champion in the space of the next three weeks.
She said: "I knew beating someone like her [Andrade], especially if I finished her, that I could deserve that title [shot] next. … I'm [also] definitely OK with fighting again. I think the title fight is in two weeks, so I think it can line up perfectly. But if they want me to fight again, I'll gain more experience."
