UFC 300 is set for its first title fight. The announcement was made by UFC CEO Dana White on a Wednesday evening. The reigning strawweight title holder, Weili Zhang, is set to defend her belt. She’s going up against Xiaonan Yan at the event scheduled for April 13.
This is a historic moment. It’s the first time two Chinese contenders will be facing off for the world title, as White pointed out. Zhang, a two-time 115-pound champion, is entering the matchup with Yan on a three-bout winning streak. She’s a standout from Fight Ready.
Zhang reclaimed her belt with a second-round submission of Carla Esparza at UFC 281. She then successfully defended her title with a five-round verdict over Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 this past August. The 34-year-old, also known as “Magnum”, initially claimed strawweight gold with a 42-second TKO of Jessica Andrade in August 2019. However, she later relinquished the belt to Rose Namajunas. During her promotional tenure, she’s 8-2 and 24-3 as a professional overall.
Yan, on the other hand, has also been victorious in eight of her 10 Octagon appearances. Most recently, “Fury” secured her title shot with a first-round knockout of Andrade at UFC 288 last May. She’s also had notable triumphs over the likes of Mackenzie Dern, Claudia Gadelha, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, and Angela Hill, among others.
UFC 300 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The event will also include a lightweight title eliminator pitting Arman Tsarukyan against Charles Oliveira. White is expected to announce more title fights for the card in the near future.
White announced the Zhang vs Yan fight on Twitter. “BREAKING NEWS: Zhang vs Yan will happen at #UFC300. The first ever Chinese vs Chinese title fight,” he tweeted on January 11, 2024.