Erin Blanchfield reveals what went wrong against Manon Fiorot and what chances she has against Valentina Shevchenko

Erin Blanchfield never wants to lose, but she has managed to find perspective after her first setback in the UFC when she lost by decision to Manon Fiorot in March.

While a win would almost certainly have cemented her as the No. 1 contender in the division, the 25-year-old flyweight prefers that she had put her bad night at the office behind her before becoming champion. There's nothing ideal about losing, but Blanchfield learned a lot from the experience and now believes she's a better fighter because of it.

“I actually talked to my dad about that,” Blanchfield told MMA Fighting. “After that fight I thought about it. It sucks to lose, but you can always get better, and you have perspective on it. I'm so happy that I was able to lose then and not lose my title to her. Let's say I fought for a title and won it and then I lost my title to her or someone else, that would have been even shittier.

“If I learn this lesson now, while I'm still on the road to the title, I think it will be much better than losing a title this way. I’d rather learn the lessons now so I can be prepared when I’m a champion.”

As for the flaws in the Fiorot fight, Blanchfield points out a few key issues that led to her difficulties during the five-round bout.

Blanchfield was particularly impressed with how effectively Fiorot used her size and reach advantage, which then led to problems with her grappling after she went 0-for-3 on takedowns.

“I think my distance was definitely not well judged,” Blanchfield said. “I feel like she did a really good job and stuck to her plan. She was very disciplined about it and I feel like I may not have had all the answers at that point. Those are things that I really wanted to focus on and get right heading into this fight. I feel like it was a really good experience for me and you're never going to have the best nights every time. I feel like it was a bad night, bad timing, bad distances. I think those are the things that led to the loss.

“I knew she was a good fighter. I knew she was using her length well. She knows how to fight for her body type and style. She just put it to good use.”

Following that loss, Blanchfield heads right back into another big fight when she takes on Rose Namajunas in a five-round co-main event at UFC Edmonton on Saturday. Meanwhile, Fiorot is expected to get a title shot against new champion Valentina Shevchenko sometime in 2025.

Blanchfield expects Fiorot could potentially give Shevchenko the same problems she faced against a bigger, longer fighter weighing in at 125 pounds. Of course, Shevchenko is the champion for a reason, but Blanchfield doesn't expect Fiorot to have done his job and taken the title.

“I think Manon will do very well,” Blanchfield said. “I think she will be a much bigger fighter than Valentina. I don't think Valentina costs much (125) and Manon is a big girl. I think she can definitely use that to her advantage, her height and her length.

“I do think that Valentina is the more dynamic fighter. She has more tools than Manon. So I think it almost comes down to who can use what better. Can Manon use her height, reach and length to her advantage over Valentina’s more dynamic style?”

Since arriving in the UFC, Blanchfield always dreamed of facing Shevchenko as one of the fighters she most admired as a young player in the sport. The New Jersey native hopes to get back into title contention with a win over Namajunas on Saturday and knows a fight could still happen.

On the other hand, if Fiorot gets the job done against Shevchenko and becomes champion, Blanchfield will have just as much motivation to earn his way back to a rematch, perhaps this time with gold on the line.

“I’ve always wanted to fight Valentina,” Blanchfield said. “I've been watching her for ages. She still has the aura of being a great champion, even after the entire Alexa (Grasso) trilogy. That’s why I would like to fight her, and of course I would also like to fight Manon to get that victory back.”

Before any of that can happen, Blanchfield must overcome Namajunas, but she couldn't have imagined a better scenario to get back to where she wants to be than landing this particular duel.

Namajunas is a former UFC champion who is currently on a two-fight winning streak in the flyweight division, and Blanchfield recognizes that a win should put her right back into title contention.

“It sucked losing my last fight and that always kind of hurts,” Blanchfield said. “So you always want to go out there and get the win. Feel the way you used to again. I'm really grateful that I'm still able to have these very high level fights and high profile fights like another five round fight against Rose.

“I have put myself in this position because of the performances I have shown in the past. That’s why I really want to continue that and really show something here.”