If you’re staying up all hours Friday night into Saturday morning to watch UFC on ESPN+ 15, congratulations, you’ve earned your hardcore fan merit badge.
The UFC debuts in the city of Shenzhen in the People’s Republic of China. Considering Shenzhen is a city of 12.5 million people in a nation of about 1.4 billion folks, this card is meant as a showcase of all the emerging talent in that part of the world, meant for a Chinese audience. If North Americans want to tune in, the UFC isn’t going to say no, but you’re not the target audience this time.
But say you do find yourself stumbling in from the bar and wanting to watch some middle-of-the-night live fights. In that case, there are some interesting fights for you to watch, and intriguing storylines to go with them.
UFC on ESPN+ 15 takes place Saturday at Universiade Sports Center in Shenzhen, China. The main card streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN.
Without further ado, here are five storylines to watch from UFC on ESPN+ 15:
Is Weili Zhang getting her title shot a bit too soon?
When the UFC sees the potential for a fighter from outside North America to make a become a star in their home country, they usually go for the gold. That’s understandable, of course. Conor McGregor’s headline bout against Diego Brandao in Dublin in 2014 was a pivotal moment in making it clear McGregor was well on his way to superstardom.
On the other hand, there are times when the UFC pushes a bit too hard, too fast. Darren Till would be Exhibit A in this regard, as his UFC London headline date ended with Jorge Masvidal derailing his hype train.
Such is the roll of the dice a promoter takes in these matters. Which brings us to the UFC Shenzhen main event. Weili Zhang has the potential to become the breakout MMA star in China, and she’ll have her opportunity to do it in a strawweight title challenge for Jessica Andrade’s belt in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 15.
Zhang (19-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is unbeaten in the UFC. But her biggest victory in that stretch is over Tecia Torres, who has lost four in a row. It’s a big jump from there to title territory. Will Zhang sink or swim? We’ll find out soon enough if the UFC’s gamble in giving her a title shot this soon will pay off.
Is Jessica Andrade a fluke champion or no?
Fair or not, the narrative which emerged from Andrade’s knockout slam win over Rose Namajunas to win the strawweight belt at UFC 237 was that she basically hit the lottery in pulling off a lightning strike of a winning move in a bout in which she was getting her butt kicked.
That’s not entirely true. Andrade (20-6 MMA, 11-4 UFC) had weathered a hideous first round but was clearly back in the fight during the second. Regardless, perception becomes reality. Despite the fact that the new champ is 7-1 since dropping two weight classes to 115 with four finishes and six post-fight bonuses, too, many are tagging her with the “fluke champion” moniker.
There are probably some who won’t credit Andrade unless she beats Namajunas in a rematch. But going all the way over to the other side of the world and taking on a 19-1 fighter who is going to have an entire country behind her is no small challenge. Perhaps a win here will finally get some of Andrade’s critics to come around.
Is Li Jingliang the real deal?
Chinese welterweight Li Jingliang has put together an impressive run after getting off to a so-so start in his UFC tenure. He’s won six of his past seven bouts, with four of his wins via knockout, and four post-fight bonuses to his name during that stretch.
That said, the competition Jingliang has faced at 170 pounds hasn’t always been the finest the welterweight division has to offer. But that’s what makes his co-feature bout with Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos one worth staying up to see.
Dos Santos (21-5 MMA, 7-1 UFC) has a similar pedigree, having won seven straight bouts, with a similar number of finishes and bonuses – and also not always against the highest-level competition. Dos Santos, likewise, has been itching for a signature bout.
So maybe Jingliang and dos Santos aren’t the biggest names the UFC can put on the marquee. But it’s a high-stakes fight for both, regardless where and at what time the fight is being held. And with everything else appearing near-equal for a fight in which the winner should emerge with real momentum, the home-court advantage could spell the difference for Jingliang, who is 2-0 on UFC cards in China.
What does EZDS have to do to get some love?
Did you know that dos Santos has a seven-fight winning streak in the UFC’s stacked welterweight division? If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be alone.
“EZDS,” as we’re going to start calling him, has not only won seven fights in a row, but also 11 of his past 12. His only UFC loss was a split decision to Nicolas Dalby in his octagon debut.
It’s not like the Brazilian has been Fitch-ing his way through fights, either. His past three fights have been finishes. He’s earned three “Fight of the Night” bonuses during his current win streak.
That’s the type of resume which gets most fighters vaulted to the top. Instead, “EZDS” has been mostly forced to grind his way through low-profile opponents on low-profile cards, and it doesn’t change much here with his bout against Jingliang.
Dos Santos talked to MMA Junkie this week and wondered aloud whether he’d get better opportunities if he was an American. It’s a valid question. In the meantime, a win over Jingliang in a bout with “Fight of the Night” written all over it could help him finally get the fights he seeks.
Does the De La Rosa family have two potential flyweight contenders?
You all know Montana De La Rosa, the “Ultimate Fighter 26” competitor who has made a name for herself in the women’s flyweight division. Although De La Rosa recently had a four-fight win streak snapped by Andrea Lee, her ability to pull submissions out of nowhere has made her a force to be reckoned with.
De La Rosa’s husband, Mark De La Rosa, returns to action on Saturday night. De la Rosa (11-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC), like his wife a submission specialist, lost a decision to Alex Perez at UFC on ESPN 2. But De La Rosa, who is returning to flyweight for the second time in his UFC tenure, won his previous two fights. He returns to action against Kai Kara-France (19-7 MMA, 2-0 UFC). A victory here would put a loss in the rear-view mirror, give him three wins in his past four, and put the De La Rosas a step closer to becoming the first married couple ever to hold UFC titles, even if that goal is still kind of far off.
