Joanna Jedrzejczyk has reflected on her unforgettable UFC 248 title fight with Zhang Weili as the bout is officially enshrined in the UFC Hall of Fame.
Jedrzejczyk challenged Zhang for the strawweight belt at UFC 248 in what became MMA Junkie's 2020 Fight of the Year, and the clash will now be honored as part of the 2026 UFC Hall of Fame class. The judges' decision that night was split, with only the third round scored unanimously for Jedrzejczyk.
"We brought female MMA, women's MMA on a different level that night," Jedrzejczyk said on the 2026 UFC Hall of Fame red carpet. She added, "We showed to people that we limit ourselves and we should always give ourselves a chance, another round, when we walk through the rain or thunder in our lives."
Jedrzejczyk was candid about the result of the title fight. "I lost that fight in judges' decision," she said. "I lost that fight. I expected to win. It would be sweeter if I won the fight, and I would become the UFC strawweight champion once again, but sometimes you have to lose to win much more, and I feel it had to be this way. It didn't hurt me. From time perspective, I'm going to say it didn't hurt me 'cause either one would win, and would be fine."
Looking back on a run that included six title defenses in her first strawweight reign, Jedrzejczyk said of Zhang, "She won that night, and I had my time. We would love to do this forever – it's impossible. I had a successful and really dominant career in my life I'm proud of."
