Tag: Weili Zhang

Rose Namajunas thinks she knows something about Weili Zhang’s latest hairdo.

Rose Namajunas is preparing for her rematch with the former champ, Weili Zhang. These two fighters have some history between them. They first met up in the Octagon back in April when Namajunas defeated Zhang and reclaimed her top spots in the strawweight division. In the lead-up to the first fight to now, Namajunas has gotten a pretty good read on Zhang, now she lends her theory on Zhangs new look.

“Cutting your hair is the move for any fighter. Hair does get in the way,” Namajunas explained on The MMA Hour. “So her doing that, I’m sure she’s seen the benefit. I think she used to have short hair her whole life as a kid. But I think just, from my understanding, she grew it out. And then now, she kinda realized that she wants to go back to how it used to be.”

Despite the new look, Zhang is a very dangerous opponent of Namajunas. Zhang holds wins over some of the best in the strawweight division such as Jéssica Andrade, and Joanna J?drzejczyk. In preparation for this rematch, Zhang has called in the help of another former champion, Henry Cejudo.

Photos of Zhang and Cejudo training together have been circulating. Cejudo put out his own warning towards Namajunas about “Weili 2.0.” Namajunas has heard this warning and is not taking it lightly.

“As far as her training camp and training with Henry Cejudo, I think she could pick up a few things, and I think that it’s probably better than what she’s been doing,” Namajunas said. “So I’m just expecting a better version of her and maybe a little more well-rounded and whatnot. But at the end of the day, it’s all about my preparation.”

This strawweight title fight will serve as the co-main event of the upcoming UFC 268 card being held in Madison Square Garden in New York. The event will be headlined by champion Kamaru Usman defending his belt against Colby Covington.

How do you think walks away from the UFC 268 event holding the strawweight belt, Weili Zhang, or Rose Namajunas?

Continue Reading Namajunas Speaks From Experience On Why She Thinks Zhang Cut Her Hair at MMA News.

Weili Zhang is heading into her rematch with Rose Namajunas with a whole new outlook.

UFC 268 goes down on Saturday night live from Madison Square Garden in New York. This could be the biggest event of the year. The co-main event will feature a strawweight title fight between Rose Namajunas and Weili Zhang. This fight is a rematch and Zhang is taking what she learned in the last fight and making the necessary alterations, both mentally and physically.

“After the fight, everybody was surprised by the result,” Zhang said on her YouTube channel. “Then Dana said there might be a rematch. The mentality I had before was to go there and learn from each other. Then I went and found out it wasn’t like that at all. So I think I need to take it really seriously now, see the fight like a war. In there, you can’t be distracted even for 0.01 seconds, whether it’s just before the fight or in camp.”

As for the physical preparation, Zhang has enlisted the help of former two-division champion Henry Cejudo. Zhang has been training with Cejudo and the pair have been issuing some warnings to Namajunas. The first fight ended early in the first round with a head kick that knocked out Zhang. Despite the nature of the loss, Zhang feels that the majority of the pressure still rests on Namajunas.

“Last time, there were all kinds of factors. I think this time I would focus more on myself instead of watching the outside stuff. After our first fight, my coach kept telling me that the next will mostly be about mental game,” Zhang said. “At this level, we’re all close technically. It’s all about who is more mentally steady. I think for the rematch, her psychological pressure might be greater than mine.”

If there is more pressure on the champion, then Namajunas might have a leg up. This is not her first rodeo as champ. She successfully defended her title once before, the first time she was champion. In fact, Namajunas is undefeated in New York and seems to thrive on the biggest stages. If Namajunas can pull off another win over Zhang at UFC 268, she could be securing a legacy for herself as the company’s strawweight queen.

Who do you think will take home the strawweight title at UFC 268?

Continue Reading Zhang Thinks Namajunas Might Be Under More Pressure In Rematch at MMA News.