Zhang Weili isn’t going anywhere.
The UFC Strawweight Champion got past Tatiana Suarez in Saturday’s co-main event, beating a contender that many expected would be one of her toughest challenges at the title level thus far.
Zhang shut down the wrestling-heavy style of Suarez through five rounds and out-landed her on the feet, securing the incumbent champ more than enough points to walk away with a unanimous decision win (49-46, 49-46 & 49-45).
The opening five minutes of Saturday’s strawweight clash made it seem as if the fight was set to be a close battle throughout. Suarez took Zhang down early and kept the champ on her back for a large portion of the round. Zhang secured her own top control later in the round, only due to Suarez pulling guard for a guillotine choke that ultimately did not amount to much. The competitive start tipped slightly in favor of the challenger.
But after the back-and-forth first frame, it essentially became a Zhang showcase. The long-standing 115-pound champ started to reverse takedown attempts from Suarez in the second round, setting up for ground and pound shots from top control in two different instances. Zhang’s ability to stop Suarez from using her wrestling background to control the fight was pivotal for the champ’s win, as she had to prevent more than a dozen attempts throughout the fight.
Zhang grew in confidence as the fight progressed, so much that she shot in for a takedown of her own later in the fight. Whether it was on the feet or on the ground, damage remained a focus for Zhang. Apart from brief submission attempts, she was constantly focused on chipping away at Suarez with strikes of any kind.
Before the official result was even announced, it was clear that slight underdog Zhang would live to fight another day as champ. The win extends her second run with the belt, which first kicked off in 2022 when she submitted Carla Esparza in the second round with a rear naked choke. Past appearances as champ have been similarly dominant to Saturday’s performance, going the distance against Yan Xiaonan and Amanda Lemos.
Suarez, a prospect who has been developing on the UFC roster since she won “The Ultimate Fighter” in 2016, has been considered by many as one of the strawweight division’s best contenders. While incredibly bad luck with injuries sidelined her numerous times over the years—slowing her rise and keeping her out of action for years at a time—wins along the way against respected talents like Jessica Andrade and Alexa Grasso made many consider a shot at the champ inevitable.
Between her ongoing reign and a 603-day run as champ from 2019 to 2021, Zhang has defended the strawweight title four times. She is now one more victory away from tying the record of Joanna Jedrzejczyk, who successfully put her strawweight strap up for grabs five times during her busy 966-day run with the belt.
Here are the quick results for Saturday’s pay-per-view:
Main Card (10:00PM EST / 2:00PM AEDT) (PPV)
Bout 12: Dricus Du Plessis def. Sean Strickland via Decision, Unanimous(UFC Middleweight Championship)
Bout 11: Zhang Weili def. Tatiana Suarez via Decision, Unanimous (UFC Strawweight Championship)
Bout 10: Tallison Teixeira def. Justin Tafa via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:35)
Bout 9: Jimmy Crute vs. Rodolfo Bellato via Decision, Majority Draw
Bout 8: Jake Matthews def. Francisco Prado via Decision, Unanimous
Preliminary Card (8:00PM EST / 12:00PM AEDT) (ESPN2 / ESPN+)
Bout 7: Gabriel Santos def. Jack Jenkins via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 3, 2:06)Bout 6: Tom Nolan def. Viacheslav Borshchev via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 5: Wang Cong def. Bruna Brasil via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Aleksandre Topuria def. Colby Thicknesse via Decision, Unanimous
Early Prelims (6:30PM EST / 10:30AM AEDT) (ESPN+ / UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 3: Rongzhu def. Kody Steele via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Jonathan Micallef def. Kevin Jousset via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 1: Quillan Salkilld def. Anshul Jubli via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:19)
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