Zhang Weili’s rise to glory has been meteoric.
The current UFC strawweight champion, Weili (21-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) has only fought for the promotion for 19 months. At UFC 227 in August 2018, Zhang made her debut in a winning unanimous-decision effort against Danielle Taylor.
In her sophomore UFC appearance in November 2018, Weili picked up her first promotional finish with a first-round armbar against former WSOF champion Jessica Aguilar.
Weili’s third fight was a victory over against perennial contender Tecia Torres at UFC 235 in March 2019. It was another unanimous decision victory for the Chinese fighter.
At UFC on ESPN+ 15, Weili claimed title gold when she finished then-champion Jessica Andrade with strikes in 42 seconds. The win projected Weili into the worldwide spotlight and earned her the bragging rights as the first Chinese champion in the promotion’s history.
In early March 2020, Weili successfully defended her title against former champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. In the co-main event of UFC 248, Weili and Jedrzejczyk combined to put on what many viewers believed to be the best female MMA fight of all time. The fight went the distance and Weili earned a split-decision nod.
Check out Zhang Weili’s rise to glory in the UFC-made feature video video above.
