UFC 292: Upstart Lemos Looks to Shock the Brilliant Zhang in Boston

By
Gabriel Gonzalez
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - AUGUST 18: (L-R) Opponents Zhang Weili of China and Amanda Lemos of Brazil face off during the UFC 292 ceremonial weigh-in at TD Garden on August 18, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Paul Rutherford/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Amanda Lemos will look to play spoiler against international star Zhang Weili who has a bevy of big name opponents awaiting her with a victory following UFC 292.

It certainly feels like 2021 all over again.  Coming off a dominant victory in November, Zhang Weili looks for all the world like the kind of force destined to possibly hold onto the strawweight title for a long time.  Back-to-back second round finishes, over former champions Joanna Jędrzejczyk and Carla Esparza, put “Magnum” on short list for Female Fighter of the Year.  The fashion in which she won her bouts, seemingly gears above the competition, had more than a few of her peers declaring her as the best fighter at 115 pounds.  One could certainly question if losses to Rose Namajunas in 2021 took the edge of the sharpness of Zhang, but she’s bounced back in a way that suggests she’s arguably at a peak of her powers that is higher than any before.

That would bode well for her at this time in the strawweight division.  Unfinished business with Namajunas would feel as if it’s always out there as long as Zhang holds the belt and Namajunas is active.  But there is also a fresh cast of characters in the title picture.  Zhang’s countrywoman Yan Xiaonan is on an impressive win-streak as well and a fight between the two would be a milestone bout for the growth of MMA worldwide, exponentially more so if it took place in China.  The undefeated Tatiana Suarez is also in superb form across two bouts this year and to take out the popular former Olympic hopeful would be a huge feather in the champion’s cap.  Roughly ten months between bouts, the desire (and demand) to see Zhang return to the cage is high and a victory on Saturday stands between her and the high profile bouts that lie beyond.

Amanda Lemos falls firmly into the role of spoiler going into Saturday’s co-headliner.  The Brazilian standout is in a better late than never situation as she enters her first UFC title bout and looks to beat one of the promotion’s most brutal statistics: Lemos is 36 years-old and fighters over the age of 35 are 2-29 in championship fights.  But in a sport where things can change in an instant, it would be folly to look past “Amandinha” and at the big names following up behind her.

A professional since 2014, Lemos built up her record on the regional scene in her native Brazil as a bantamweight and accumulated a 6-0 mark before getting the call up to the UFC in 2017.  She dropped her promotional debut to future Bellator featherweight title challenger Leslie Smith and was suspended two years following a failed drug test.  Upon her return, Lemos dropped down to the strawweight division where she has posted a strong 7-1 mark to become a breakout contender in the weight class.  She’s also looked her most dangerous as she enters this bout, having bounced back from a headlining loss to Jessica Andrade with stoppages over veteran Michelle Waterson and fellow top contender Marina Rodriguez in back-to-back fights.

An upset for Lemos could set up a number of scenarios, with a rematch against Zhang being chief among them.  A victory for Zhang would raise questions as to how soon she would expect to fight again.  An extended layoff could see a title eliminator between the aforementioned Suarez and Yan with Zhang facing the winner in early 2023.  Should she face one of them next with seven months, then it would likely come down to whether or not the UFC could take a bout between Zhang and Yan overseas or have Zhang face Suarez at a big event in the United States.

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