Xiong Jing Nan Believes She Can Hold Her Own Against UFC's Valentina Shevchenko

Xiong Jing Nan, the reigning strawweight queen of ONE Championship, is confident she can finish UFC women's flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko should they ever meet inside the cage.

A ONE Championship-versus-UFC hypothetical mega event has gotten fans talking over the past few weeks, discussing potential fantasy matchups between the two largest organizations in the world.

Xiong has reigned over the Asian promotion’s 125-pound division for nearly three years, defending the title successfully in four fights over this span. That makes her one of the most dominant world champions in ONE Championship.

The 33-year-old from Beijing, China believes a battle between her and Shevchenko would be close but exciting.

“She’s an all-around fighter. She’s the UFC champion. So it means we both have the highest level of MMA skills,” Xiong told International Business Times.

“Though her base is kickboxing, it doesn’t mean she’s not good at the ground game. In her recent fights, I can see that she has been improving her wrestling and ground control, putting lots of hard work into it and getting a huge development. She’s tough, all-around, and not easy to find a weakness in her. But I’ll look forward to [fighting] against her. It would be a great show [if it happens], and I promise I will put everything I have into that fight.”

Xiong owns a 15-2 professional record, which includes 10 knockout finishes and one submission.

Shevchenko, on the other hand, is 21-3 with seven knockouts and seven submissions.

The two fighters do appear to be evenly matched. While Shevchenko’s record indicates she has a superior ground game, Xiong believes she’s underrated on the mats and wants to prove it to fans all around the world.

If she gets into the cage against Shevchenko, Xiong will be looking for the finish.

“It’s not an easy fight, to be honest. She’s a strong, tough fighter. However, I’m not going to let her take the victory either. I’ve been training with the coolest team at an awesome gym, Evolve MMA. All of my teammates have impressive fighting styles, like Alex Silva, former ONE strawweight champion. He has captured a Copa de Mundo BJJ world championship before,” Xiong said.

“I’m eager to show the world that Xiong Jing Nan is not only an aggressive boxer, but an outstanding ground fighter too. With my obviously improved fighting skills, I’m sure I could end her night in a spectacular fashion.”

Although a ONE Championship-versus-UFC card is unlikely, it nevertheless excites “The Panda.”

Xiong also believes ONE Championship would dominate its counterpart if ever an event of this magnitude ever gets made.

“ONE Championship versus the UFC, that’s no doubt going to be legendary and epic. It’s the best way to put together the East versus the West, for fans of both promotions. Finally, we can witness two sides of the world with the best fighters in the universe. The thought of an event like that gets me psyched,” Xiong shared.

“Definitely ONE. I love challenges. We have Angela and Christian Lee, and they’re just so great for MMA. Of course, don’t forget Adriano Moraes who just defeated Demetrious Johnson. We’re living proof that ONE is tougher than the UFC."