Nunes earns 1st decision win in victory over Shevchenko

Amanda Nunes survived a shaky third round to keep her championship hopes intact.

The stamina issues that plagued Nunes in her lone UFC loss to Cat Zingano sprang up again against Valentina Shevchenko. Two competitive rounds gave way to a final frame that Nunes nearly gave up to her lower-ranked opponent. Unlike in the Zingano fight, Nunes was able to avoid being finished.

To Nunes' credit, she did more than enough work in the first two rounds to seal the win. The 27-year-old Brazilian is known for her fast starts, but she seemed intent on pacing herself. Still, she was able to take Shevchenko down in the first two rounds.

In the second, Nunes came close to finishing Shevchenko. She took Shevchenko's back and worked for both a rear-naked choke and a neck crank. Somehow, Shevchenko survived the submission attempts and even ended up in top position to close the round.

Shevchenko trailed on the scorecards going into the third where she started to assert herself. She took Nunes down, advanced to side control, and hurt Nunes badly with elbows from the crucifix position. Back on the feet, Shevchenko damaged Nunes in the clinch, but Nunes hung in tough to make it to the final bell:

With the unanimous decision victory, Nunes wins her third straight and protects her No. 4 ranking. She has been campaigning for a shot at the women's bantamweight championship.

Shevchenko loses for the first time since September 2010.