Source: China-Singapore Sports
In the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC300) on the morning of the 14th Beijing time, a much-watched "Chinese Derby" will be staged in Las Vegas, USA. At that time, the current women's strawweight champion Zhang Weili will compete with her top-ranked compatriot Yan Xiaonan on the same stage to dedicate a battle of kings belonging to China's "Valkyries".
UFC Women's Strawweight Rankings. Screenshot of the UFC website
This bout has a special meaning for both fighters and fighters – it is the first time in UFC history that two Chinese athletes have competed for a World Title.
As a leading figure in China's women's mixed martial arts (MMA) field, Zhang Weili has already won the title of World Champion back in 2019. Later, after the epic duel with Joanna, Zhang Weili became famous and became a household name "Fighting Queen".
But from 2019 to the present, Zhang Weili's career has not been smooth sailing. She lost her belt twice to "Thug Rose" Rose. But it didn't take long for the more mature and confident Zhang Weili to stage the "Return of the King" and win the world championship at the same level again.
Image source: Courtesy of the organizer
Compared with Zhang Weili, Yan Xiaonan is slightly inferior in popularity, but his results are good. As the first Chinese female boxer to sign with the UFC, Yan Xiaonan had a record of 17-3-1 before this "China Derby", with 8 knockout victories.
Yan Xiaonan became one of Zhang's strongest challengers by defeating former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade last May. At that time, she expressed her desire for the belt: "In the next fight, I definitely want to challenge for the title, and I believe I have the strength to challenge for the title." ”
Regardless of the final outcome of this "China Derby", Zhang Weili and Yan Xiaonan have teamed up to create another milestone in mixed martial arts in China.
"It's just a game for the two of us. But for the entire Chinese MMA, this is a step of progress. At the pre-match press conference, Zhang Weili commented on the duel with Yan Xiaonan.
Image source: Zhang Weili's personal social media
In a sense, Zhang Weili is a promoter and witness to the development of this sport in China. Since her first gold, more and more people have begun to learn about and participate in mixed martial arts.
Zhang Weili believes that MMA has great potential in China, and she bluntly says: "There are a lot of new gyms here, and a lot of young people are starting to participate in different combat sports, such as sanda and wrestling. I really think MMA is growing very fast in China and has a bright future. ”
Image source: Yan Xiaonan's personal social media
And this "Chinese Derby" once again ignited the Chinese sports world. As Yan Xiaonan said, this fight will not only be an important match in her career, but will also have a positive impact on the development of MMA in China.
Yan Xiaonan also hopes that while showing the power of Chinese women, more young girls can understand and participate in it, "I hope that more young Chinese fighters will enter the UFC, challenge for the championship, and win the championship." ”