Despite making earlier agreements with Alexa Grasso, the UFC has decided to put Zhang Weili against Yan Xiaonan at UFC 300. This marks the first time the company will feature a fight featuring two Chinese fighters.
UFC CEO Dana White announced the fight this Wednesday, allowing the pair to officially join the first batch of bouts confirmed by the company, including Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan, Jiri Prochazka vs. Aleksandar Rakic, Calvin Kattar vs. Aljamain Sterling, and Bo Nickal vs. Cody Brundage. The two will face in the huge event scheduled on April 13 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight was quite a surprise after Weili made an earlier arrangement with the UFC’s pound-for-pound queen, Grasso. The women’s strawweight champ proposed the idea in December, agreeing to meet the other fighter at the 125 class division. The two were both enthusiastic about taking the fight, and with the status of the two in the UFC ranking, many were pushed to believe that it would be one of the promotion’s biggest fights to offer at UFC 300. However, White smashed the anticipated bout, saying Weili would instead face Xiaonan.
“This fight has badass written all over it,” White enthused over the fight on Instagram.
Weili will be gambling her belt in the fight, entering the cage with a three-fight winning streak she obtained from Amanda Lemos, Carla Esparza, and Joanna Jędrzejczyk. Meanwhile, Yan boasts a two-fight winning streak from Mackenzie Dern and Jéssica Andrade. This will be a monumental experience for the challenger. Yet, it comes with a huge risk, with Weili sporting 11 KO wins, eight submissions, and 11 first-round finishes in her record.
