"Khamzat numbers" - Fans and pros hail 'freaking savage' Zhang Weili for demolishing Amanda Lemos both on feet and ground at UFC 292

UFC 292 co-main event is in the books. Strawweight champion Zhang Weili attempted the first defence of her title surging Brazilian Amanda Lemos. She went into the fight as a massive -305 favorite over the ++255 underdog Lemos. After five rounds of absolute domination, Weili emerged victoriously and took the belt home to China.

The champ exploited her challenger's vulnerability to getting taken down and took the fight to the ground off a kick in the opening seconds. She established top control and softened Lemos up with devastating ground-and-pound. While potent D’arce choke attempts from the challenger threatened to end the fight, the champ continued to throw devastating ground-and-pound.

Rounds two and three were rinse and repeat for the champ but Lemos showed glimpses of brilliance with perfectly anded shots that justified Weili’s grappling-heavy approach. While the challenger kept standing back up, she could not use the time on her feet to launch a meaningful offense against the champ.

The Brazilian fighter did her best work in round four when the champ started to show signs of fatigue. The 36-year-old countered Weili’s striking attempts effectively but could not deny an eventual takedown to the champ.

Zhang Weili came out strong in the final frame of the fight and dropped Lemos with a picture-perfect right hand. The Brazilian showed incredible toughness and managed to make it to the final bell. However, she had no answer to the champion’s onslaught. In the end, the judges awarded a dominant 50-43, 50-44, 49-45 decision to the champion.

Apart from the win, Zhang Weili created a record for the biggest strike differential in Women's UFC history. Weili outstruck Lemos 296 to 29 in terms of total strikes and 163 to 24 in terms of significant strikes that landed. Additionally, she displayed crisp striking and landed at a staggering 75.1% accuracy.

Fans react to Zhang Weili’s absolute domination as she looks primed to rule the Strawweight division for a long time

The title fight against Amanda Lemos marked the first defense of the Chinese champion’s second tenure as the UFC strawweight champion. Zhang Weili [23-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC] won the coveted UFC crown from Jessica Andrade all the way back in 2019 and defended it against Joanna Jedrzejczyk before losing to Rose Namajunas in back-to-back fights. However, she reclaimed it from resurgent Carla Esparaza at UFC 281.

Zhang Weili's complete and total domination of Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 indicates that she looks primed to rule the division for a while with her well-rounded skillset. MMA Twitter resonated with the sentiment and registered their reactions to her performance. Here are some reactions that caught our attention: