In the aftermath of Zhang Weili’s first loss in seven years, which ended her 21-fight winning streak and her reign as UFC strawweight champion, she posted on Instagram congratulating Rose Namajunas on her victory and vowed to bounce back. When UFC.com visited Zhang at Fight Ready MMA in Scottsdale, Arizona, Zhang cited her opponent and Georges St-Pierre as examples of champions who bounced back from defeat.
On November 6, she gets her chance to do just that in a rematch against Namajunas at UFC 268.
“I think people are looking forward to seeing how you stand up when you fall down,” Zhang told UFC.com. “Of course, I also look forward to that. Because the last fight, I felt like it was over before it even started. In fact, in terms of techniques, no one has really demonstrated it. I hope this time we can show some real techniques. I think this rematch will definitely be an exciting fight; it will definitely display techniques in the form of being more comprehensive and complete.”
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She’s not wrong in terms of saying the fight was over before it started. Namajunas ended things with a left high kick a little more than a minute into the fight, and so what was a highly anticipated fight between the two never got the space or time to develop. Of course, that’s fighting, but with a second crack at “Thug Rose,” Zhang is attacking the opportunity with even more fervor.
The lessons learned in that fight at UFC 261 led Zhang to bring her training to the desert. She and former two-division champion Henry Cejudo cultivated a friendly relationship over the last couple of years, and Cejudo extended an invitation to her and her team to come to Arizona and train with him, Eddie Cha and the rest of the Fight Ready squad.
“I learned a lot about wrestling here,” Zhang said. “I learned a lot of wrestling techniques with Henry, as well as distance control, mind game, and something about mental toughness. I think it all makes me stronger.”
For “Triple C,” having a hand in training Zhang was a natural progression after retiring from the sport. Few have accomplished as much as he has in combat sports, and he knows that well of knowledge is not something to just sit on and waste.
“When it comes to the highest levels, I feel like that’s my calling to train with the one-percenters because I believe I can use those tweaks and turns in order for them to create a whole ‘nother animal because that happened to me,” Cejudo said. “I told Weili and her team, ‘Listen, we have to accept this. We made a mistake, or something happened, but whatever it is, we have to accept this loss.’ That’s key number one. We have to accept it, and then we have to make those adjustments because what we thought was working that got us there, we have to be able to make those adjustments for us to be able to beat her (Namajunas), and we have to be able to see everything as a learning curve. True adversity reveals and builds character.