Weili Zhang is happy to be fighting in New York City. Having received a hostile reception in Florida the former strawweight champion was greeted much more warmly at the UFC 268 press conference.
It sounded like there were a few Chinese fans in attendance at the press conference and she got a few cheers. Zhang admitted that she was affected by the boos at UFC 261.
The Chinese fighter seemed relieved to be fighting in front of a more tolerant crowd,
“I’m so happy to be here to see all the fans in New York. New York City has so many different cultures, so many different nationalities, I’m just so happy to be here.”
She didn’t actually say ‘unlike Jacksonville’ but the inference was fairly clear. Zhang was clearly taken aback by the hostility shown towards her by the crowd in the city, in the first UFC event to take place in front of a live audience after the Covid-19 shut down.
She was sitting next to Colby Covington who was predictably brash. A reporter asked her how she felt about being in close proximity to the outspoken welterweight and Zhang didn’t seem to mind at all, switching to English to say he was ‘handsome’.
