Lauren Murphy issued a statement following her fourth-round TKO loss to UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 266.
Murphy earned her first UFC title shot off of a five-fight win streak, but as Shevchenko showed on Saturday night, there are levels to this game. The champion was able to have her way with Murphy on the feet and on the ground all night long as she dominated her foe until getting the fourth-round finish. Now that the fight is over, Murphy can reflect on the experience, and she took to social media to open up on her “rough night at the office.”
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“Rough night at the office I couldn’t do sh*t in there last night. Sometimes it just be like that. It was an honor to share the cage with a fighter of Valentina’s caliber. I am proud to have earned a spot across from her. I loved the walkout and felt great in the cage. My corners did a great job too. They just kept it simple and positive, like I asked them to. I can’t stand it when corners rush in and scream at a fighter about how they’re losing rounds… I know when I’m losing rounds and I knew I needed to make something happen,” Murphy wrote. “I couldn’t make it happen due to getting hit every time I tried. As the great Chael P Sonnen once said, “The problem is, I was in there with a much better fighter tonight”. Sh*t happens, but I’m okay. We live to fight another day. Thank you @ufc @mickmaynard @danawhite for the opportunity, and thank you @bulletvalentina for the fight. It was an amazing experience to fight for the UFC title, I’ll never forget it or regret it. I’ll be back but for now I want to enjoy some time off. Thanks everyone for your support and kind words! They’re appreciated/”
What do you think is next for Lauren Murphy after getting finished by Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 266?