Weili Zhang becomes the new Women's Strawweight Champion
Weili Zhang becomes the new UFC Women's Strawweight Champion by defeating former champion Carla Esparza via submission. Zhang applied the rear naked choke, submitted her opponent, and regained the UFC Strawweight championship. Zhang previously lost the title at UFC 261.
Zhang wasted no time getting her offense going, putting Esparza on the back foot. She is now 7-2 in the UFC, with her only defeat coming against Namajunas. Weili Zhang explained her feelings in the post-fight interview. She said,
"This fight played out exactly what we expected,
Me, as a fighter, if you're a wrestler: OK, let's wrestle. If you're a jiu-jitsu fighter: OK, let's roll. If you're a striker: Let's fight in the standup. That's how I get improved and prove myself against the best of the best."
Zhang claimed that her strikes had no impact, and she did not feel a little fear against her. She further said,
"When she landed a couple of punches, I felt nothing, and that's why I smiled," Weili said. "There was completely no threat from her striking, and that also made more relaxed, more calm."
Weili is excited to defend her title in China if UFC organizes an event in her home country. But, she did not restrict herself to just China's events. She is open to every challenge. She said,
"They're all good fighters," Weili said. "I'll just see what the UFC wants. I'll be waiting for the call and discuss with them which one is better for me."
On the other side, Carla Esparza remained positive following her title loss. The former two times champ got a bad reaction in her home country, and people booed her. The people did not react positively to her because of her lackluster performance in winning the title. However, Esparza did not have any hard feelings about her title loss, as she posted on her Instagram.
"You win some you lose some, just part of this dangerous game we play," Esparza posted. "No regrets, I worked hard and did my best."
Carla Esparza must rethink her weaknesses and return strongly to get a rematch against Zhang. Let's see what will happen in the future. Please stay connected to our website for more updated UFC news.
