Fists of Fury to challenge Magnum's opus

No more speculation, it's settled! The first ever all-Chinese title fight in the history of mixed martial arts is happening.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced on Thursday that reigning strawweight champion Zhang Weili will defend the 115-pound (52kg) title against the division's No 1 challenger, and fellow countrywoman, Yan Xiaonan, on the April 13 card of UFC 300 at the T-Mobile Arena in the organization's base city, Las Vegas.

The fight, confirmed by UFC president Dana White on social media, will mark the first time two Chinese fighters square off against one another in a world title fight of any major MMA promotion — a testament to the combat sport's growing profile in the birthplace of ancient martial arts.

As UFC's first ever world champion from China, Zhang, who holds a 24-3 win-loss career record, is currently enjoying her second title reign in the division, having scored a successful defense against Brazil's Amanda Lemos by unanimous decision in August after reclaiming the belt from American wrestler Carla Esparza via a submission in November 2022.

Zhang, who goes by the moniker "Magnum" in the Octagon, first won the belt on home soil in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in August 2019, when she knocked out another Brazilian fighter, Jessica Andrade, in just 42 seconds. She later lost the belt to Rose Namajunas in April 2021 and was denied in a rematch six months later.

Known as "Fury" in the Octagon, Yan, who owns an 18-3 all-time record, is riding on the momentum of back-to-back wins over former champ Andrade in May and grappling standout Mackenzie Dern in October 2022. With a similar striking style to Zhang and solid recent results, Yan has punched her way back into title contention, setting herself on a collision course with Zhang.

Both exceptional fighters with plenty of experience and finesse in their corners, the clash between the 34-year-old pair is guaranteed to be a success with three months to go, said White.

"Five years on (since Zhang's first title win), we will see history being made again as Weili faces No 1 contender Yan Xiaonan for the strawweight title at UFC 300. And this is the first time two Chinese contenders have faced off for a world title," White said in a video message released on UFC's Weibo account on Thursday.

Citing Zhang's two previous successful title defenses, especially her split-decision win against Polish challenger Joanna Jedrzejczyk in March 2020, White described her as "the most dominant queen" in the highly competitive division.

"Weili has 19 finishes in 24 wins. That's an 80 percent finish rate. She's tied for second most title wins in strawweight history and she was involved in arguably one of the greatest fights ever versus Jedrzejczyk," White said.

"Her last fight was the most dominantly statistical win ever in UFC women's history against Lemos. She outstruck Lemos 288-to-21 in that fight. She landed the most strikes on the ground in UFC strawweight ever."

Yan, as the first female athlete from China signed by the UFC in August 2017, is also making the promotion's boss take notice with her recent red-hot form.

"She's coming off a first-round knockout against Andrade — in under three minutes — in a fight which, by the way, she was a two to one underdog. And she has eight first-round knockouts (in her career), which is badass," White said of Yan.

Previously announced bouts on the UFC 300 card include a lightweight clash that pits former champion Charles Oliveira of Brazil against Russian heavy puncher Arman Tsarukyan.

Former light heavyweight titleholder Jiri Prochazka will take on Aleksandar Rakic, while former bantamweight champ Aljamain Sterling meets Calvin Kattar, with more fights to be announced in the coming days.

sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn