Athletes
Alexa Grasso Embracing Every Opportunity
Former Flyweight Champion Looks To Get Back In The Title Conversation By Defeating Surging Brazilian Natalia Silva At UFC 315
For the first time in two years, Alexa Grasso is preparing to face someone other than Valentina Shevchenko. The first time the two met was back in 2023, when Grasso pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the year, submitting the flyweight champion in the fourth round. The two went on to compete two more times after that, with Shevchenko defeating Grasso last September to reclaim her belt and concluding their championship trilogy.
Now, Grasso gets a chance to re-enter the title conversation when she faces surging Brazilian Natalia Silva. Being able to face someone and test herself against them is something that Grasso always embraces.
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“Every single athlete represents different aspects,” Grasso said. “Every person has their strongest weapons, so it's good having different athletes to perform against. I just like that to always improve in different areas.”
Not to mention, this is the first time in two years that Grasso is fighting three rounds instead of five rounds.
“After fighting five rounds now, three rounds feels so much different,” Grasso said. “So much lighter. It feels good. It's a different kind of emotion.”
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When you spend over an hour of fight time in the Octagon with someone, you learn a lot about yourself, and your skill set. And even though, the fight didn’t go her way last time there were still a lot of takeaways for Grasso, who was the first Mexican woman to win a UFC title.
“I trained so much, I learned so much,” Grasso said. “I evolved so much. I think it was a great experience for me. I feel like a different athlete. The mindset is that you can always be better. You can keep learning, you can be faster, it never stops, so it's really cool.”
She now turns her focus to Silva, who has had a quick rise to the top of the flyweight division since making her debut back in 2022. The Brazilian is undefeated in the Octagon, claiming wins over Andrea Lee, Viviane Araujo, and, most recently, former champion Jessica Andrade.
UFC 315 Fight Week Interviews: Shevchenko | Grasso | Fiorot
Even though she has spent time training to face Shevchenko over the past few years, that didn’t mean Grasso wasn’t keeping close tabs on who was coming up in the division.
“I've seen her career,” Grasso said. “I like to watch all the flyweights because you have to always keep watching all the girls. She's really good. She’s super talented. She has a taekwondo background, and I'm taking this fight really serious. I know that she's dangerous, and I've been training really hard.”
Grasso’s fight against Silva comes at a unique time because just one fight after theirs concludes, the flyweight belt is on the line as Shevchenko takes on France’s Manon Fiorot. With Grasso sitting in the No. 1 contender spot, and Silva just a few spots behind her at No. 5, there’s a chance one of them could challenge the winner next.
“That's a fight that excites me, too,” Grasso said. “Both of them are super talented. Both are southpaw, which is something that represents something different. Manon has been in the line for so long. She had the opportunity before, but she was injured. It's cool to watch other women perform and do what they do best. I'm in that spot, too. I know how that feels to be running toward your dreams, so I’ll be watching that fight.”
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Also featured on Saturday’s card is Jasmine Jasudavicius taking on Andrade, and with Erin Blanchfield and Maycee Barber set to face off in a few weeks in Las Vegas it’s an exciting time for the 125-pound division, with a lot of contenders waiting in the wings.
For Grasso, the goal is to get back to the gold and reclaim her throne, but she knows she has a tough task ahead and is putting all of her attention and energy into that.
“I'm just focused on my fight right now. I'm happy to be here on this card and after the fight, we’ll talk about it.”
UFC 315: Muhammad vs Della Maddalena took place live from Bell Centre in Montréal, Québec, Canada on May 10, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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