Coach Expects Weili Zhang vs. Rose Namajunas In First Quarter Of 2021

A women’s strawweight title fight between Weili Zhang and Rose Namajunas could take place in the first quarter of the new year.

That’s according to Zhang’s jiu-jitsu coach Pedro Jordao who expects his student to look for a second title defense in early 2021.

Nothing is confirmed as of yet but Namajunas is expected to be the Chinese superstar’s next opponent following her impressive unanimous decision win over Jessica Andrade in July.

“We’ll see how things go with this virus,” Jordao told MMA Fighting. “But I think (the fight) will probably be in the first quarter. … We’re training for a while here. It appears that her next fight will be against Rose, but nothing is set yet. Everything indicates that’s the plan — and it makes sense, everybody knows that.”

As for the matchup, Jordao is a fan even though he believes the former champion in Namajunas is one of the better opponents Zhang has faced in recent times.

“She’s another tough opponent,” Jordao said. “I think Rose is more technical (than Zhang’s previous opponents), more calm, and very talented. It’s time to test that.

“I know she’s probably training really hard, but I think it’s a good match-up for Weili Zhang style-wise. People say she’s is very strong, very strong, but we’ve seen how technical she is, too. I trust Weili and think she will be able to defeat Rose.”

Zhang has become known for her striking, especially given her first-round knockout win over Andrade last year in addition to her five-round war with Joanna Jedrzejczyk back in March.

However, she is equally as adept on the ground and won’t be afraid of the jiu-jitsu Namajunas possesses either.

“She has taken every opponent down in the UFC except for ‘Bate Estaca’ (Andrade),” Jordao added. “She’s always training jiu-jitsu, she’s very well-rounded. I train with her for six years and I watch her evolution closely, I know how powerful her strikes are, her technique on the ground, how strong is her guillotine and rear-naked choke, her armbar.

“She’s very confident on the ground. She’s not afraid to go to the ground.”

All in all, a Zhang vs. Namajunas fight promises to be one heck of an encounter — wherever the fight goes.

Do you think Zhang will retain her title against Namajunas? Or will Namajunas become a two-time champion?