Injured Shevchenko vacates flyweight title, forcing undisputed bout at UFC 332

Valentina Shevchenko has vacated the UFC women’s flyweight championship due to injury, the promotion announced during the UFC Paris broadcast, meaning an undisputed title will be on the line when Natalia Silva faces Wang Cong in the UFC 332 main event at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah on October 3.

Shevchenko was originally scheduled to defend her belt against Silva at UFC 332 before an undisclosed injury forced her withdrawal. The promotion subsequently elevated the matchup from an interim contest to a fight for the full championship. “Bullet” last competed in November, successfully defending the title against former strawweight champion Weili Zhang, who had been attempting to become a two-division titleholder.

Silva arrives on the back of eight consecutive victories since her UFC debut in 2022, a run that includes wins over former champion Jessica Andrade and Alexa Grasso. She secured her title shot by outpointing former strawweight queen Rose Namajunas at UFC 324. Wang enters the headliner on a four-fight winning streak, having defeated Bruna Brasil, Ariane Lipski da Silva, Eduarda Mora, and Tracy Cortez.

The UFC 332 co-main event features former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo against bantamweight prospect Payton Talbott. Former KSW welterweight champion Roberto Soldic makes his Octagon debut opposite Khaos Williams, while the main card is rounded out by King Green vs. Esteban Ribovics at lightweight and Ateba Abega Gautier vs. Roman Kopylov at middleweight.