(R-L) Lauren Murphy kicks Roxanne Modafferi in their flyweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on June 20, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Lauren Murphy wasn’t falling for any tricks from Liliya Shakirova and didn’t flinch ahead of her UFC 254 fight
Lauren Murphy takes on newcomer Liliya Shakirova at UFC 254 and there were some mind games being played at the face-off and weigh-in.
Murphy, a UFC veteran of sorts, was facing up to Shakirova, who is set to make her UFC debut. The Uzbekistan star might be 8-1 in her career but moving to the UFC is a big deal for any top star.
Shakirova tried to get into the head of Murphy and faked a movement towards her. However, Murphy wasn’t fazed with all this and didn’t flinch one bit.
The UFC veteran didn’t even blink at all this while Dana White was the one who looked the most scared.
Murphy also showed off her disgust at her opponent and showed her the finger before walking off.
The 37-year-old then posted a simple message to Shakirova and claimed no one is scared in the UFC:
Making such moves at the face-off isn’t new and more often than not it leads to a scuffle. Credit must be given to Murphy for keeping her cool and she does come into this clash as the favourite.
The 37-year-old is on a three-fight win streak and last beat Roxanne Modafferi. Murphy certainly has the size advantage over Shakirova and it will be interesting to see how the fight goes.
The American would have more fire in her to get the win at UFC 254, and she could move closer to a title shot.
She has lost just one fight since moving to the Flyweight division and could be the next challenger to Valentina Shevchenko.
Murphy has to dispatch Shakirova first, and she seems confident in her abilities to do just that.
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