UFC Fight Night 157 witnesses history. Zhang Weili becomes the face of Chinese martial arts with her monumental victory over the former UFC strawweight champion, Jessica Andrade. There was a lot on stake going into this historic event. Zhang Weili had the opportunity to be the first Chinese UFC champion and she shines the brightest in Shenzen in front of an arena full of Chinese fans.
Andrade had the most number of UFC wins(11) coming to the fight. Her gameplan stayed the same in this fight which became the reason for her demise. The former strawweight champion charged at Zhang, looking to put some early pressure. However, Zhang stayed calm and used her reach to hurt Andrade with leg kicks. As Andrade tried harder to close the distance, Zhang caught her with a right hand and used her vicious knees and elbows to stop Andrade in just 42 seconds.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
And here we go! #UFCShenzhen pic.twitter.com/nxJI6Iu8z0
— UFC (@ufc) August 31, 2019
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
With this victory, Zhang fulfilled her dream of being the first Chinese UFC champion and continued her unbeaten run in the UFC. On the other hand, Andrade failed in her first UFC title defend after she won the belt from Rose Namajunas.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
In the post fight interview, the first Chinese champion thanked the fans in the arena and warned the straw weight division. While Andrade expressed her wish to fight Zhang again for the title in China.
With a historic win in UFC Fight Night 157, The Magnum has opened up endless opportunities for the Chinese fighters. Zhang Weili will not only inspire millions of women and fighters in China, but also force UFC to expand its horizon to the other side of the world, China.