Alexa Grasso Fighting Style: The Mexican Champion Who Submitted a Legend

On March 4, 2023, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Alexa Grasso walked into the octagon as a 7-to-1 underdog against Valentina Shevchenko — the most dominant champion in women’s MMA history — and submitted her with a rear naked choke in round four. Nobody saw it coming. That’s the point.

Grasso’s style doesn’t announce itself. There’s no flashy spin kick that clips an opponent’s chin, no single dramatic knockout punch you replay on social media. What she has is something quieter and more dangerous: the patience to let a fight come to her, the boxing IQ to manufacture angles nobody else sees, and submission instincts that activate the moment an opponent gets comfortable on the feet.

Women’s MMA has a short list of fighters who can win a world title by genuinely outskilling a legend. Grasso belongs on it. Here’s how she does it.

How Alexa Grasso’s Boxing Background Built Her UFC Game

Grasso’s striking foundation is traditional Mexican boxing — high guard, disciplined jab, movement driven by footwork rather than power. She grew up training in Guadalajara, where the boxing tradition runs deep, and that heritage shows up every time she steps into the cage.

She’s not a heavy hitter. Grasso’s shots land through timing and angle rather than pure force. The jab is her measuring tool — she uses it to track distance, disrupt her opponent’s rhythm, and set up whatever comes next. Against Shevchenko, she used the jab to keep the champion hesitant, which opened up her left hand down the middle and, eventually, her clinch work.

What separates Grasso from fighters who have good hands but lose their boxing the moment the fight becomes physical is her composure. She doesn’t panic when a combination gets answered. She resets, circles, and starts over. That patience is what lets her win the second half of a round after losing the first.

Grasso’s Footwork: The Secret Weapon Nobody Talks About

Alexa Grasso’s footwork is the part of her game that deserves more attention than it gets. She moves laterally off the centerline instead of backing straight up when pressured, which forces opponents to re-acquire her position constantly instead of simply walking her down.

Watch how she handles fighters who try to cut off the cage. Rather than retreating to the fence, Grasso pivots — she’ll step to her right and circle toward the open space while throwing a cross to keep the pursuer honest. It’s a boxing-school response to MMA pressure, and it works because most women’s flyweights are trained to pursue in straight lines.

This lateral movement also feeds her counter-striking. Grasso prefers to let opponents come to her and slip inside their punches to land on the way out. She’s not a natural combination puncher — she doesn’t throw six shots in a row — but she consistently lands the shot that scores because she’s already moved to an angle where her opponent can’t fire back cleanly.

The Shevchenko fight was a masterclass in this. Valentina spent the first round trying to establish her distance and jab, and Grasso kept sliding off the straight line, making it harder and harder for the champion to find her rhythm.

The Clinch Submission That Changed Women’s MMA

Alexa Grasso’s submission of Valentina Shevchenko wasn’t a desperate scramble — it was a deliberate sequence she built over four rounds. When Grasso tied up in the clinch, she was looking for the takedown or the trip, and Shevchenko was defending both. The back take came when Shevchenko committed to one defense and Grasso slipped behind her.

What makes Grasso’s ground game underrated is that she rarely needs it, so people forget it’s there. She’s comfortable in top position and in the clinch, and her submission timing is sharp — she doesn’t fish for chokes from bad positions. When she locks in a rear naked choke, the body triangle is already there. That’s a detail that separates her from fighters who know submissions but can’t finish them under resistance.

The broader lesson for MMA fans — and for anyone managing a fighter in TKO Tycoon — is that submission threats don’t have to come from the ground. Grasso is most dangerous when the fight is still technically “standing.” The clinch is where she hunts, and by the time her opponent realizes it’s a grappling fight, it’s often too late.

For a deeper look at how elite fighters use clinch work to control and finish, check out our breakdown of clinch work in MMA — the range where most fans stop paying attention right before the finish happens.

Grasso’s Kick Game — The Layer Everyone Underestimates

Because Grasso’s hands draw so much attention, her kicks don’t get the credit they deserve. She throws the lead leg teep to maintain distance, uses the low kick to condition an opponent’s lead leg over time, and mixes in the body kick when she catches someone in a pocket. None of these individual tools is spectacular. Together, they build cumulative damage that makes her striking harder to time as the fight progresses.

She’s also effective with the knee in the clinch — her Muay Thai-influenced inside game gives her something to threaten with while she’s working for position. It keeps opponents from going fully passive in the tie-up, which is exactly what she wants.

Alexa Grasso vs. Manon Fiorot — The Style Matchup to Watch

With a title eliminator against Manon Fiorot on the horizon at September’s Noche UFC card, Grasso faces the most technically demanding striker she’s met in years. Fiorot fights out of France and brings a Muay Thai and karate-influenced base with longer range than most women in the flyweight division. She wins with volume, reach, and a high guard that frustrates opponents who want to box on the inside.

This is actually a good matchup for Grasso on paper. Fiorot’s style invites footwork-based countering — she plants and throws combinations, which means Grasso’s lateral movement can pull her off-rhythm. The question is whether Grasso can avoid eating the knee and front kick that Fiorot uses to punish inside entries.

Where Fiorot has the edge: she’s longer, she throws more volume, and she’s better on the feet against fighters who want to stay there. Where Grasso has the edge: if this fight gets physical and goes to the clinch, Grasso’s transition game and submission threat could change the equation in a hurry. Noche UFC on September 12 could define who challenges for the flyweight belt next.

Frequently Asked Questions: Alexa Grasso Fighting Style

How did Alexa Grasso beat Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 285?

Grasso won by rear naked choke submission in round four. She used lateral footwork to disrupt Shevchenko’s jab-based rhythm throughout the fight, then caught the back during a clinch exchange late in the contest. The finish was the product of a patient, deliberate game plan — not a lucky scramble.

What fighting style does Alexa Grasso use?

Grasso is primarily a technical boxer with a strong clinch and submission game. She trained in the traditional Mexican boxing style in Guadalajara, emphasizing footwork, timing, and counter-punching. Her MMA game layers in Muay Thai clinch work and ground submissions on top of that boxing foundation.

Is Alexa Grasso the UFC women’s flyweight champion?

Grasso won the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship at UFC 285 in March 2023 by submitting Valentina Shevchenko. Their rematch at Noche UFC ended in a controversial majority draw. As of 2026, she remains one of the top-ranked fighters in the division and is pushing toward another title shot.

When is Alexa Grasso’s next fight?

Grasso is scheduled for a title eliminator fight against Manon Fiorot on September 12, 2026, at Noche UFC. A win would position her as the next challenger for the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship.

Want to test your own fight IQ? Build a flyweight contender in TKO Tycoon and see if you can manage your way to a world title. The footwork and clinch skills that make Grasso dangerous translate directly into the game’s stamina and grappling ratings.

References

1. MMA Fighting — UFC 285 results: Grasso vs. Shevchenko full coverage
2. ESPN MMA — Alexa Grasso fighter profile and career statistics
3. UFC.com — Alexa Grasso official athlete page

Image credit: ufc.com