Weili Zhang News
Weili Zhang receives supplies from Chinese fans during coronavirus lockdown in Las Vegas
Tom Taylor - March 24, 2020
UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang still hasn’t returned to her native China after her UFC 248 war with Joanna Jedrzejczyk. The champion elected to stay put in Las Vegas for up to a month, not only to avoid potential exposure to the coronavirus, but to simplify the stringent United States Anti-Doping Agency tests she’s subject to as a UFC champ.
Weili Zhang details emotional moment at hospital with Joanna Jedrzejczyk: 'She kept crying for hours'
Adam Martin - March 12, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang shared details of an emotional moment she had with rival Joanna Jedrzejczyk at the hospital following UFC 248. Zhang and Jedrzejczyk went toe-to-toe for 25 minutes in the co-main event of UFC 248, producing a banger of a title fight that pundits immediately called an instant classic. Both women landed hundreds of strikes on each other’s faces and bodies in a bloody battle that is already being labeled one of the greatest MMA fights of all time.
Chael Sonnen says Valentina Shevchenko vs. Weili Zhang is 'not a superfight' right now
Cole Shelton - March 11, 2020
Chael Sonnen doesn’t believe Valentina Shevchenko vs. Weili Zhang is a true superfight, at least not yet. Zhang has talked about wanting to fight Shevchenko down the line, but the flyweight champion doesn’t seem so interested. She said the Chinese champion isn’t an elite fighter and will loser her belt in her next fight. So, a champion vs. champion fight doesn’t make sense, and Sonnen agrees.
UFC rankings update: Weili Zhang zips past Valentina Shevchenko on P4P list
Tom Taylor - March 11, 2020
The official UFC rankings have been updated after last Saturday’s UFC 248 card, and in a fairly surprising twist, not much has changed. That’s probably because UFC 248 featured precisely zero ranked fighters outside the main and co-main events. That being said, the updated UFC rankings do feature some interesting changes. Most notably, Weili Zhang has surpassed Valentina Shevchenko on the women’s pound-for-pound list on the strength of her UFC 248 defeat of Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Daniel Cormier has also finally been removed from the UFC light heavyweight rankings, clearing the path for a host of other light heavyweights to move up.
Valentina Shevchenko believes Weili Zhang loses her title in next fight
Cole Shelton - March 9, 2020
Valentina Shevchenko doubts Weili Zhang will be a UFC champion for much longer. In the co-main event of UFC 248, Zhang edged out a split-decision win over Joanna Jedrzejczyk. The win also served as her first title defense since winning the belt with a first-round knockout win over Jessica Andrade.
Dana White: Weili Zhang will get same push from UFC as McGregor, Rousey
Tom Taylor - March 9, 2020
Dana White is very high on UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang, who defended her belt in an absolute war with the former champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk in the co-main event of last Saturday’s UFC 248 card. White gushed over Zhang at the UFC 248 post-fight press conference, announcing that the Chinese champion has become a major needle-mover in her homeland, a territory the UFC is working hard to break into.
John McCarthy gives his scorecard for Weili Zhang vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Adam Martin - March 9, 2020
Bellator commentator and veteran MMA official Big John McCarthy has share his scorecard for the UFC 248 co-main event between Weili Zhang and Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Zhang and Jedrzejczyk put on an instant classic on Saturday night, going the full five-round distance against each other in an all-out war. Zhang won the fight by split decision, but Jedrzejczyk saw her stock rise by putting on an incredible performance even despite losing. McCarthy, who knows a thing or two about fighting, was asked by host Josh Thomson on the “Weighing In” podcast what he thought about the fight, and he praised both women for their performances.
Tom Brady shares prediction for Weili Zhang vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Adam Martin - March 5, 2020
NFL legend Tom Brady shared his prediction for the UFC 248 co-main event between UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang and Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Brady, the longtime quarterback of the New England Patriots and a six-time Super Bowl winner, is good friends with UFC president Dana White, who has season tickets for the Pats. Brady is in the final year of his contract with the Patriots and can become a free agent in two weeks’ time, and White has been trying to help lure him to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Dana White discusses star power of Israel Adesanya, Weili Zhang
Tom Taylor - March 4, 2020
UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang and UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya come from different worlds, but the two fighters definitely have one notable thing in common: they both have the potential to become massive stars for the UFC. At least, that’s what Dana White thinks. White commented on Zhang and Adesanya’s potential superstardom ahead of UFC 248 in Las Vegas, where the former will defend her title against Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and the latter will defend his belt against Yoel Romero.
Weili Zhang still 'really angry' about Joanna Jedrzejczyk making fun of the coronavirus
Adam Martin - March 4, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang admits she’s still irritated by Joanna Jedrzejczyk making fun of the coronavirus on social media. Jedrzejczyk made a joke about the coronavirus on her Instagram in January which ruffled the feathers of Zhang — not to mention those in the MMA community who felt like joking about the coronavirus was an error to do considering how many people around the world have died from the outbreak.
Weili Zhang outlines her path to victory against Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Adam Martin - March 3, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang explained her path to victory for defeating rival Joanna Jedrzejczyk this weekend at UFC 248. Zhang takes on Jedrzejczyk in a high-stakes battle between bitter rivals in the co-main event of this weekend’s card. The Chinese champion has been unbeatable since joining the UFC, and she believes she will extend that mark when she takes on her Polish rival this weekend.
Rose Namajunas explains why she turned down title shot against Weili Zhang
Tom Taylor - March 3, 2020
Former UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas says she was offered a title shot opposite reigning champ Weili Zhang, but decided to turn down the opportunity. Namajunas opened up on this would-be title fight, and explained why she turned it down, on a recent episode of the UFC Unfiltered podcast. She says she simply wasn’t sure that she wanted to continue fighting at the time — which is a pretty good reason not to fight the division’s top fighter.
VIDEO | Weili Zhang trains with Muay Thai legend Saenchai
Tom Taylor - February 7, 2020
Amid the rampant spread of the headline-dominating Coronavirus, Chinese UFC strawweight champion Weili Zhang has moved her training from her native China to Bangkok, Thailand. In Bangkok, Zhang crossed paths with an absolute legend in Saenchai, widely regarded as one of the greatest Muay Thai fighters of all time — and certainly one of the flashiest.
Valentina Shevchenko says Weili Zhang became champ due to 'lucky circumstances', not interested in potential superfight
Cole Shelton - February 4, 2020
Valentina Shevchenko believes Weili Zhang doesn’t deserve the chance to fight her for the women’s flyweight championship. After Zhang beat Jessica Andrade at UFC Shenzhen back in August, she spoke about wanting to move up and fight Shevchenko. Yet, the flyweight champion says Zhang only became a UFC champ because of lucky circumstances.
Weili Zhang will leave China due to coronavirus outbreak, finish UFC 248 camp in Las Vegas
Adam D Martin - February 2, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang has decided to head to leave Beijing and head to Las Vegas to complete her training camp for UFC 248. Zhang is set to take on rival Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 248, taking place on March 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Zhang had planned on finishing her training camp in her native Beijing, China, but due to the coronavirus outbreak which has left hundreds dead and thousands more in hospitals, she has decided to head to Las Vegas, Nevada to finish her camp.
Weili Zhang responds to Joanna Jedrzejczyk's joke about coronavirus
Adam Martin - January 29, 2020
UFC women’s strawweight champion Weili Zhang has responded to a joke that Joanna Jedrzejczyk made about the coronavirus outbreak in China. Jedrzejczyk posted an Instagram story earlier this week in which she shared a picture of herself and Zhang as the two are set to collide in March at UFC 248 for the women’s strawweight belt. But she included one extra thing in the picture, and that’s a gas mask. It’s clearly poking fun at Zhang for being Chinese, which is where the coronavirus is affecting thousands of people, and where numerous people have died from it.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk says she will dominate 'not very technical' Weili Zhang
Cole Shelton - January 3, 2020
Joanna Jedrzejczyk believes she will dominate Weili Zhang at UFC 248 in March en route to reclaiming her strawweight title. Since losing the title in 2017 she beat Tecia Torres and then moved up in weight where she lost to Valentina Shevchenko in a fight for the flyweight title. Following the loss, she returned to strawweight in October to beat Michelle Waterson to earn the title shot.
Dana White believes Weili Zhang can be 'one of the biggest stars' in UFC history
Cole Shelton - December 30, 2019
Dana White believes current UFC strawweight champion, Weili Zhang can be one of the biggest stars in UFC history. Zhang had a massive 2019 where she dominated Tecia Torres at UFC 235 and then headlined a UFC event in her home country of China. There, she was taking on Jessica Andrade for the title. She ended up knocking out the Brazilian out in under a minute to become the UFC champ.