Former UFC rivals Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk, who competed in memorable bouts at UFC 248 and UFC 275, recently reunited and expressed mutual respect and friendship, despite their competitive history in the octagon.
Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk? They’re all about respect and admiration. These two have a history, having faced off in unforgettable fights at UFC 248 and UFC 275. Recently, they had a little reunion. And guess what? They filmed it.
Check out the video below.
In the ring, they’re opponents. That’s the game. But outside? They’re friends. That’s what Zhang said, anyway. “We can have dinner together, we can talk to each other, we can be really good friends,” she said in Mandarin. And Joanna? She’s a legend in Zhang’s eyes. A champ. Someone to learn from.
Both Zhang and Joanna are shoo-ins for the UFC Hall of Fame. Maybe even twice. Their UFC 248 clash? That’s likely to be inducted into the Fight Wing. Zhang successfully defended her strawweight title against Joanna in a five-round slugfest. That fight? It won MMA Fighting’s 2020 Fight of the Year award.
They had a rematch at UFC 275. Zhang won with a knockout. A spinning backfist, no less. That was Joanna’s last fight. She was a former champion who defended the 115-pound title five times in a row. After that loss, she retired.
But Joanna doesn’t seem to hold any grudges. “Remember, I think like we are athletes, but we’re humans,” she said. “One day we can beat the hell out of each other and the next day we can have dinner.”
As for Zhang, she’s not slowing down. She’s defending her title in her second reign as strawweight champion. She’s set to fight Yan Xiaonan, another Chinese star, at UFC 300 on April 13 in Las Vegas.