Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
“My fight with Weili Zhang is going to be big. So they need this big-money fight.”
UFC strawweight Joanna Jedrzejczyk wants to fight during the coronavirus lockdown and is targeting a “big-money” rematch against Weili Zhang.
Jedrzejczyk and Zhang produced arguably the great fight in women’s MMA history at UFC 248 last month, with Zhang winning a split decision after a back and forth five rounds. The fight was Zhang’s first defense of her strawweight title, the belt Jedrzejczyk held and defended five times from 2015-17.
Speaking to MMA Junkie, Jedrzejczyk explained her change of heart in fighting during the lockdown as she was initially reluctant to getting back in the cage for the next year.
“A few days, a few weeks ago, I was like, ‘I’m not fighting for the next 12 months.’ But a few days ago, I texted Dana (White) that I wanted to fight,” Jedrzejczyk said. “That’s the thing. You never know when you’re going to wake up and say, ‘OK, I’m leaving. I’m going back to the States and start my camp. Sign the agreement.’
Events such as UFC 249 and UFC Columbus had to be cancelled due to the outbreak of Covid-19, but the promotion is adamant they will start hosting cards again soon. Whether the fights will take place on “Fight Island” or at the UFC Apex and Performance Institute in Las Vegas is currently unknown.
“The UFC – we need big fights, and my fight with Weili Zhang is going to be big. So they need this big-money fight. We’ll see. I don’t know.”
“Big money – that’s it. That’s what I want,” Jedrzejczyk continued. “I don’t need to make more money, but it’s a money fight, and I want a piece of this cake. This fight is a big fight. We were not the main event, (but) we put on a hell of a fight. People love watching … only big things, only big things.”