Erin Blanchfield patiently awaits her next UFC assignment.
Although it’s not totally clear what that will be, Blanchfield (12-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) assumes an important matchup with Manon Fiorot (11-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is likely. The two flyweight combatants have established themselves as top contenders in a division that awaits a championship rematch between champion Alexa Grasso and former champion Valentina Shevchenko while they both recover from injury.
“Yeah, it’s definitely stalling,” Blanchfield recently said during an online live stream for digital wallet platform HUMBL. “I feel like I’ve had a couple No. 1 contender fights now. But you know, I’m still pretty young and gained valuable experience in those fights. … Whether it’s an interim or not, I’ll beat (Fiorot), and then I should definitely get a title next.”
Although UFC CEO Dana White has indicated it’s next, no timeline has been revealed for Grasso (16-3-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) vs. Shevchenko (23-4-1 MMA, 12-3-1 UFC). Shevchenko had hand surgery in mid-September. Coincidentally, Grasso underwent hand surgery in early October.
Should there be further delays, Blanchfield wouldn’t mind seeing an interim title implemented. She’s healthy and ready to go, following a slight nasal fracture suffered in a unanimous decision win over Taila Santos in August.
“I haven’t been told about that yet,” Blanchfield said. I would definitely push for that. That’s something I’d definitely be interested in. I’m not sure when Valentina and Alexa are going to be ready to fight again. I know I think they’re on a similar timeline in their recovery. I would hope that if it ends up being longer, they’d have me and Manon fight for an interim.”
