UFC 322 is roughly two and a half months away as of this writing. Whereas the calendar could learn Aug. 29, the eye is already shifting to Saturday, Nov. 15 inside Madison Sq. Backyard in New York Metropolis.
Late Thursday night, UFC CEO Dana White took to Instagram to announce a cracking championship combat to happen the third Saturday of November in The Large Apple. That fall night, the UFC Ladies’s Flyweight Championship might be at stake within the co-main occasion.
Present UFC Strawweight Champion Zhang Weili (26-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) will vacate her 115-lb strap to maneuver as much as the 125-lb division to tackle incumbent UFC Ladies’s Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko (25-4-1 MMA, 14-3-1 UFC,) The UFC Strawweight Championship would be the focus of the co-main occasion of UFC 321 a couple of weeks prior in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
UFC 322 serves because the penultimate pay-per-view to stream on ESPN+ inside the US. Efficient in January, all flagship occasions, together with your entire 43-event UFC schedule might be accessible by way of Paramount Plus with none further cost.
Zhang Weili Relinquishes Captain’s Chair at Strawweight With UFC 322 Reserving
Going into UFC 322 in November, Zhang Weili, the now-former UFC Strawweight Champion, has posted a report of 5-0 in her final 5 fights relationship again to the spring of 2022. This previous February, Zhang trekked to Sydney, Australia for UFC 312, the place she efficiently defended the strawweight strap for what proved to be the final time with a unanimous determination victory over Tatiana Suarez (10-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC.)
After the combat, Zhang Weili met with the assembled press backstage to debate the victory over Suarez.
“I actually respect Tatiana taking this combat and let each of us present how good feminine fighters will be,” Zhang mentioned by means of an off-camera translator. “I do know many individuals say that I’ve by no means fought such grappler earlier than and Tatiana is undefeated, however I don’t actually care what others mentioned. I simply give attention to myself.”
Whereas the problem of who will assume Zhang’s seat on the desk within the strawweight division might be settled by the point the UFC 322 co-main occasion begins, with both Virna Jandiroba or Mackenzie Dern changing into the brand new titleholder simply earlier than Halloween in Abu Dhabi, she will be able to additionally dethrone a fairly robust fighter when she strikes as much as flyweight.
Shevchenko Brings Championship Pedigree, Household Honor to UFC 322 Co-Essential Nov. 15
Within the different nook, present ladies’s flyweight titlist Valentina Shevchenko might be going into UFC 322 in New York Metropolis this fall with a report of 3-1-1 in her final 5 fights. This present day, she’s on a three-bout unbeaten streak.
On Could 10 in Montreal, Quebec, she scored a unanimous determination victory after 5 rounds of motion over Manon Fiorot (12-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) within the UFC 315 foremost occasion. That combat was Fiorot’s first journey to the fabled Octagon in additional than a 12 months’s time.
The sister of the now-retired Antonina Shevchenko, Valentina Shevchenko initially claimed the UFC Ladies’s Flyweight Championship on Dec. 8, 2018 in UFC 231 from Toronto on pay-per-view by means of unanimous determination over Joanna Jedrzejczyk (16-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC.)
From there, she defended the strap seven occasions earlier than Alexa Grasso (16-5-1 MMA, 8-5-1 UFC) submitted her with a rear-naked choke within the first combat of an eventual trilogy in March of 2023. A rematch throughout the preliminary Noche UFC the next September led to a cut up draw. As a result of champion’s benefit, Grasso retained the strap.
Final September, the trilogy ended definitively after Shevchenko scored a unanimous determination.
Ultimate Ideas on Zhang Weili vs. Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 322
UFC flagship occasions are at all times particular nights of motion contained in the Octagon, however when the promotion touches down in New York Metropolis each autumn, it’s much more unimaginable. Very similar to the annual Rose Bowl Recreation in Pasadena, CA when the calendar flips over to Jan. 1, UFC occasions at Madison Sq. Backyard are the granddaddy in their very own proper.
It’s been that approach ever since New York State legalized MMA in 2016. The MSG exhibits are the UFC’s model of the Rose Bowl. UFC 322 might be no exception.
This combat is a late contender for the perfect scrap of the 12 months in 2025. Two fighters with impeccable resumes will throw down in November.
One last query: Who do you assume walks away because the champion? Tell us within the feedback.
