Voting is now open for the 12th annual World MMA Awards. Head here to vote for your favourite fighters and MMA personalities.
Fighters Only has extended the nomination period from 12 months to 18 months (1st January 2019 – 30th June 2020) to best account for all global MMA action and performances.
The star-studded, black-tie 2020 World MMA Awards event will be held in October 2020 on a date and location to be announced.
In the lead-up to the big show, we are profiling each of the 12th annual World MMA Awards nominations.
***
Zhang Weili vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk is nominated for the Fight of the Year in the 12th annual World MMA Awards.
As soon as the 25 minutes of high-octane action was up, many hailed the fight between UFC strawweight champion Zhang Weili and former 115-pound queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk as one of the greatest in UFC history.
At UFC 248 in March before the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic hit the USA, both women gave it their all to retrieve UFC gold in what was Zhang’s first title defence and Jedrzejczyk’s second attempt at winning back her belt after losing it to Rose Namajunas two-and-a-half years earlier.
However, it was Zhang who came out on top after five rounds of violent in-cage warfare. The Chinese fighter edged two of three judges’ scorecards for the split decision victory over Jedrzejczyk, who is the division’s longest reigning champion.
Zhang’s power seemed to be the difference maker. Both women had plenty of success with their offensive output, but the state of Jedrzejczyk’s ballooned forehead and a potential broken nose could have swayed the judges.
Despite the damage she accrued over 25 minutes, Jedrzejczyk didn’t back down a jot against the strawweight buzzsaw. Zhang’s face also suffered significant swelling, while her legs were battered and bruised as the Pole punctuated her punches with crushing leg kicks.
Regardless of the result, both women seemingly earned the respect of their counterpart following a tense and controversial pre-fight build – to be expected after each played their part in such a spectacular contest.
Watch the fight highlights above to get a reminder of just how enthralling the fight was.
Is Zhang Weili vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk your Fight of the Year?
Voting is now open for the 12th annual World MMA Awards.
Head here to vote for your favourite fighters and MMA personalities.