When Valentina Shevchenko suffered shoulder and back injuries, the UFC had to scramble to find a new main event for UFC 332. As a result, Natalia Silva and Wang Cong are now set to fight for the vacant 125-pound title in the main event of the October 3 card at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Silva was always going to be in the title picture. She is currently a perfect 8-0 inside the Octagon and enters the matchup riding a 14-fight winning streak. Her last three victories came against former champions Rose Namajunas, Alexa Grasso, and Jessica Andrade, making her the No. 1-ranked contender.
Had Shevchenko been healthy, Silva would have challenged the longtime champion for the undisputed title. Meanwhile, Cong is also riding a strong run of her own, having won four consecutive fights. Her most recent victory came against Tracy Cortez at UFC 329 in July, where she earned a unanimous decision.
However, there is an interesting chapter from Cong’s past that many fans may not know about. Dana White brought it up during the UFC 332 press conference, revealing that Cong had actually defeated Shevchenko before. The victory did not come inside the UFC, though. Instead, Cong beat “Bullet” in a kickboxing bout back in 2015.
Wang Cong Names Valentina Shevchenko as the Toughest Fighter She Has Ever Faced
Recently, the UFC posted a video in which Cong reflected on taking on Shevchenko on short notice in 2015. For the unversed, Cong defeated Shevchenko by unanimous decision in a three-round kickboxing bout at Kunlun Fight 33 on October 31, 2015, in Beijing.
The victory saw Cong take the Kunlun Fight women’s lightweight title from Shevchenko after the latter had successfully defended it several times.
The bout also marked Shevchenko’s final professional kickboxing appearance before she transitioned to MMA and eventually began her UFC career less than two months later. In the video posted by the UFC’s official account, Cong recalled accepting the fight against “Bullet” on just nine days’ notice.
Interestingly, Cong admitted that she initially had no idea who Shevchenko was or just how respected she was in the kickboxing world.
She said, “In 2015, I fought Shevchenko in Kunlun Fight. I only had 9 days to prepare for that fight. I did not know who Shevchenko was at first, so I took the fight.”
She added, “When I got to the venue, they asked, ‘Who are you fighting?’ I said Shevchenko; their faces dropped. She defended her title twice, and no one could beat her. I just felt I could beat her. Even to this day, she’s the toughest fighter I have ever faced. But now, when I look back on that fight, I realize it was purely willpower.”
PURE WILLPOWER 💪
Wang Cong recalls fighting former champion Valentina Shevchenko ahead of her first UFC title shot at #UFC332!
[ Watch Countdown Here ➡️: https://t.co/RstWsSm1D6 ] pic.twitter.com/fcxuvH2Fhy
— UFC (@ufc) October 2, 2026
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The win was a massive one for Cong, especially considering the reputation Shevchenko had already built by that point.
Shevchenko started training in Taekwondo at just five years old before moving on to Muay Thai at 12 under coach Pavel Fedotov. She earned the nickname “Bullet” at 12 after knocking out a 22-year-old opponent, a reflection of the speed that would later become one of her trademarks.
She went on to become the youngest IFMA World Champion at 15 in Kazakhstan in 2003 and won the IFMA World Championships 11 times during her amateur career. She also captured the prestigious World Muay Thai Council (WMC) undisputed world championship in 2012.
On top of that, Shevchenko won a major Kunlun Fight kickboxing world title and defeated former UFC champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk three times during her Muay Thai career.
With more than 90 combined wins across K-1, Muay Thai and kickboxing before making the full-time move to MMA, Shevchenko had already established herself as one of the most accomplished female fighters in combat sports.
That makes Cong’s 2015 victory even more impressive. Now, nearly 11 years later, the two could potentially cross paths again.
Silva is undoubtedly the most deserving contender based on her UFC run, but Cong’s history with Shevchenko adds another interesting layer to the UFC 332 title fight. If Cong gets past Silva, a rematch with “Bullet” could suddenly be just one fight away.
Kshitiz Kumar Singh is a UFC Writer at NY Fights with over three years of experience in sports journalism and content creation. Known for his sharp storytelling and passion for combat sports, he has written in-depth features on stars like Brock Lesnar, Randy Couture, and Ilia Topuria. Before joining NY Fights, Kshitiz worked as a UFC Editor at EssentiallySports while currently serving as a WWE Editor at FirstSportz. His admiration for legends like Georges St-Pierre continues to inspire his detailed and engaging MMA coverage. Whether he’s covering the Octagon or the squared circle, Kshitiz is committed to delivering accurate, high-quality content. Outside the world of sports, he’s a dedicated cinephile, often found practicing monologues from his favorite Al Pacino films, combining his love for cinema with storytelling.
