Watch Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko face off at NCAA Women’s Final Four

At this level, Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko might as nicely be finest buddies.

The 2 prime flyweights proceed to make the media rounds forward of their starring roles as coaches on The Final Fighter 32. On Friday, that promotional tour took them to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland to take a seat courtside for the NCAA Girls’s Closing 4 event, the place they’ll watch basketball celebrity Caitlin Clark attempt to lead her Iowa Hawkeyes to a win in opposition to the Connecticut Huskies. Forward of the sport, Grasso and Shevchenko shared a pleasant faceoff, which could be watched under.

Grasso (16-3-1) stays the UFC girls’s flyweight champion after capturing the belt with a shocking fourth-round submission of Shevchenko in March 2023. Grasso retained her belt within the rematch this previous September, gutting out a controversial cut up draw at Noche UFC.

Shevchenko (23-4-1) was the division’s long-reigning queen previous to her stumble in opposition to Grasso. “Bullet” racked up a division-record seven consecutive title protection throughout her time on the throne, defeating the likes of Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Jessica Andrade, Liz Carmouche, Taila Santos, and extra.

Grasso and Shevchenko are anticipated to compete in a trilogy bout someday later this 12 months following the airing of TUF 32, which is about to kick off in June.