Zhang Weili Eyes Immediate Title Shot

Originally posted on BoxingNews.com | Last updated Jan 8, 2026 2:58 AM ET

Zhang Weili’s head coach, John Wood, is calling for an immediate return to the strawweight division to challenge the new champion Mackenzie Dern.

The move follows Zhang’s unsuccessful bid to become a two-division champion this past November, where she suffered a unanimous decision loss to flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 322. Zhang vacated her strawweight title to pursue the flyweight fight, leaving the door open for Mackenzie Dern to capture the vacant belt. Dern secured the championship at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi with a unanimous decision win over Virna Jandiroba. Now, Wood believes the narrative is perfectly set for Zhang to reclaim the belt.

Should Zhang return and defeat Dern, she would become the first woman in UFC history to hold the strawweight title on three separate occasions. Mackenzie Dern has welcomed the challenge, stating after her title win that beating “the best 115-pounder of all time” is the only way to solidify her legacy. Coach Wood emphasized that Zhang’s size disadvantage was her undoing against Shevchenko, but at strawweight, her power and speed will help her.

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The Future

“There’s obviously a clear cut path to go back and take that title from Mackenzie — no disrespect to Mackenzie. That’s Weili’s belt. A lot of people looking at that and obviously that’s the fight to make. We’ll see what she wants to do. There’s weight classes for a reason and when you take two equally skilled fighters, the bigger, stronger one is sometimes going to have the advantage.

“I know what Weili’s capable of and everybody does. She’s the best strawweight we’ve ever seen. She’s amazing. That woman is an athlete and I’ve seen what she does in the gym. To have Valentina do that and be able to hold her down and do those things was impressive. There’s weight classes for a reason and sometimes you’ve got to find that out,” Wood said

The Approach

Against Shevchenko, Zhang struggled because she couldn’t outmuscle a larger opponent in the clinch. At strawweight, her strategy will likely revolve around high-volume and leg kicks to immobilize Dern. By staying at distance, Zhang can use her superior hand speed to “pick apart” Dern’s striking, which, while improved, lacks Zhang’s explosive power. The goal is to force a stand-up battle where Dern is forced to trade.

Tactically, Dern will likely look to exploit Zhang’s aggression. Because Zhang likes to explode forward, Dern can use that momentum to “duck under” and force the fight to the mat. Once on the ground, the skill gap is immense; Dern’s world-class BJJ transitions are designed to capitalize on scrambles, turning a Zhang takedown attempt into a submission victory.

This article first appeared on BoxingNews.com and was syndicated with permission.

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