UFC 213 headliner Valentina Shevchenko explains why you can't reach her on fight day

Valentina Shevchenko could be just hours away from wrapping a UFC title around her waist, but until that opportunity arrives, you’re going to have a hard time reaching her to wish her luck.

Shevchenko (14-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) rematches UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes (14-4 MMA, 7-1 UFC) in tonight’s UFC 213 pay-per-view headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. She looks to avenge a past loss and also claim the most prominent title in the women’s bantamweight division.

However, now that fight day has arrived – and despite the sometimes-agonizing daylong wait to get to the cage, she’s cut herself off from the outside world.

“On the day of the fight, I never respond,” the 29-year-old Kyrgyz-born Peruvian told MMAjunkie Radio. “On the day of the fight, it’s no time for meetings or speaking.”

However, leading up to tonight’s big conclusion of the annual UFC International Fight Week, she made exceptions not only for her team in Las Vegas, but for friends and family who couldn’t make it.

“Before the fight, I still have a little time if it’s my family or my very close friends to wish me good luck,” she said. “Of course every time I respond, and it’s very good to speak to them because they’re giving me good energy and positive energy toward the fight.”

And what a life-changing one it could be. The headliner concludes a stacked lineup of fights. A victory could also potentially set up a lucrative rubber match with the Brazilian champ, who defeated Shevchenko via unanimous decision in 2016.

However, Shevchenko said she’s not really concerned about whether she’d grant an immediate rematch; she worries only about the fight in front of her.

“I don’t think about this because I don’t have to think about this,” she said. “My thinking is only about the fight, and I really don’t care what happens with (Nunes) after this fight.”

For more on UFC 213, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

MMAjunkie Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.