This Saturday, the UFC will be back in the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. And so will fans. UFC 261 will feature the return of the fans to UFC events, with a packed venue for the first time in over a year. The card also boasts not one but three big title fights. Headlining the card is a rematch between welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal. Also, strawweight champion Weili Zhang will be defending her title against former champ Rose Namajunas. One of the most dominant champs in UFC history Valentina Shevchenko will defend her flyweight champion against former strawweight champ Jéssica Andrade. With a stacked main card the preliminary portion features three Chinese prospects making their debut. One of those is Zhu Rong, who will take on Rodrigo Vargas (11-4, 0-2 UFC) looking to get his first UFC win.
Zhu Rong
Standing at 5’9″
Fighting at 155 lbs (lightweight)
21-years-old
Fighting out of Aba, Sichuan, China
Training out of Enbo Fight Club
A pro record of 17-3
11 KO/TKOs, 4 Submissions
How will Rong fare in the UFC:
Crazy enough Rong has been in the sport for only five years and has already fought twenty times. He’s only 21-years-old and already has tons of experience. Along the way he’s fought not great but at least decent competition.
Rong is well-rounded being capable of finishing the fight where ever it goes. He fights long throwing a lot of kicks from the outside to maintain his range. He’s good at throwing his kicks up to the middle but really good at attacking the legs. Rong stays active with kicks and mixes it up very well. He has solid footwork as well, dancing around on the outside, moving side to side, sticking and moving. Rong will at times plant his feet and throw in the pocket. His head becomes stationary and it’s caused him to get hit too much, but he has a heck of a chin.
Although he’s a talented guy on the feet, Rong has solid wrestling capability as well. He’s not a great wrestler but he has it in his back pocket. His ground and pound, another talent he brings to the table, is outstanding. Not often will you see guys go body-head in the grounded strikes and Rong is one of the better fighters that does it. I like Rong and I see a lot of potential especially being so young. The only things that will hold him back is his takedown defense and getting hit too much. I see Rong representing China respectfully for many years to come.
- Striking: B+
- Kickboxing: A-
- Clinch: A-
- Wrestling: B-
- Grappling: C+
- Striking Defense: C+
- Takedown Defense: C+
- Cardio: A-
- Biggest Strength: Kickboxing/Movement
- Biggest Weakness: TDD
How he matches up with Vargas:
The best way to describe Vargas is as a decent wrestler with heavy hands. Being as tough as he is for as long as this fight stays standing, he will get picked apart on the feet by Rong. Vargas has power but little output and no setups. No way I see him catching Rong, who understands distance control and is the much more technical striker. Vargas could take him down but doesn’t have the grappling nor the control to do anything effective. The pick is Rong and I believe he gets it done easily.
