Zhang Weili
The final name on my list is one of the most recently crowned UFC champions, as China’s [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag] looks primed and ready to send her career into the stratosphere in the 2020s. She won the UFC strawweight title in decisive fashion and now faces the challenge of one of the greatest women’s champions in UFC history, Joanna Jedrzejczyk. If she gets past Joanna, I can see Weili becoming a dominant force at 115 pounds before setting her sights on the big names in the division above her.
That could eventually see her on a collision course with Valentina Shevchenko in what would be an outstanding champion-vs.-champion matchup. But, in addition to her in-cage accomplishments, Weili’s career in the 2020s could surpass her sporting endeavors. As the first Chinese UFC champion, Zhang could help break down barriers and help open up the UFC to the colossal Chinese market.
If the UFC ended the next decade having fully broken into China, with Weili leading the way as a long-reigning UFC champion during that time, “Magnum’s” inclusion in our end-of-decade list would surely be beyond debate.
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