UFC flyweight champion Natalia Silva doesn't plan on waiting for Valentina Shevchenko to recover.
Silva (21-5-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) defeated Wang Cong (10-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) to claim the vacant belt in the UFC 332 main event at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Valentina Shevchenko (26-4-1 MMA, 15-3-1 UFC), who relinquished her title due to injury, warned Silva not to get too comfortable in her absence. While Shevchenko is expected to be Silva's next opponent, White advised the Brazilian to be an active champion.
"I want to be an active champion," Silva agreed during the UFC 332 post-fight press conference through an interpreter. "There is no point in being a title holder if you don't put it out for a defense and
you're not active. My intention is for people – first of all, this is my moment, this is my time, it's time for people to see who I am as a title holder and a champion that puts her title on the line and defends it as much as possible."
If Shevchenko isn't healthy in time, Silva assessed her options after already beating former champions Rose Namajunas and Alexa Grasso.
"First of all, there's many, many great girls out there and tough opponents," Silva said. "But, I'm not one to name names here. This is not the time to name names. It's the time for me to celebrate. I just won this, fresh off, I want to enjoy this moment here. I don't have a name in mind or someone else, but I do want to say I've never ran away from a fight, no matter what was asked of me. This is my moment to enjoy being a champion, but whenever called upon, I will face whoever is the next one to it, but I want to be an active champion."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Natalia Silva agrees with Dana White on being an active UFC champion
