"China will rise again" - Henry Cejudo sends inspiring message to Zhang Weili after her loss to Rose Namajunas at UFC 268
Henry Cejudo had no complaints about Zhang Weili's performance against Rose Namajunas at UFC 268.
Taking to Twitter, the former two-division UFC champion said Zhang showed "tremendous growth" during the eight weeks they trained together. He also said that it was an honor to work with the Chinese star.
Zhang found herself on the wrong side of a split decision following her hard-fought showdown with Namajunas on Saturday. The three judges scored the fight 47-48, 48-47, 49-46 in favor of the American.
Cejudo, who has been coaching Zhang since September this year, credited 'Magnum' for the way she performed at UFC 268.
"In a 8 week camp you made tremendous growth. Many people had you wining the first 3 rounds of the fight but at the end of the day, the 3 judges is what matters. It’s been a honor to work with you champion and I know it’s only the beginning of Weili 2.0. China will rise again."
In a 8 week camp you made tremendous growth. Many people had you wining the first 3 rounds of the fight but at the end of the day, the 3 judges is what matters. It’s been a honor to work with you champion and I know it’s only the beginning of Weili 2.0. China will rise again 🇨🇳🏆 https://t.co/VbXSkmRkxa
Training with Cejudo clearly helped Zhang Weili polish her wrestling skills. The 32-year-old enjoyed significant ground control time opposite Namajunas compared to her previous fights.
Zhang Weili will look to bounce back stronger following her second straight UFC defeat
Zhang Weili has now lost two consecutive fights in the UFC. Both her defeats came at the hands of Rose Namajunas.
Now that her rivalry with 'Thug Rose' has come to an end for the time being, Zhang is determined to make a strong comeback and return to the strawweight title picture once again.
Addressing her UFC 268 loss at the post-fight press conference, Zhang Weili said she felt sorry for the coaches who invested a lot of time and effort into her training.
“Actually, I am just so grateful for this opportunity to fight in New York and fight in front of such a big audience to showcase my skills. I was very happy training with my coaching team. We can’t really control the outcome of the fight but we just try to control the effort that we put in. I just try and win every second. The overall game plan worked well. I just feel sorry for the coaches because they did a tremendous job for me," Zhang said via a translator.
Catch Zhang Weili's comments in the video below: