UFC strawweight contender Tatiana Suarez suffered a bizarre injury just minutes into her fight with Zhang Weili at UFC 312.
Tatiana Suarez‘s first shot at UFC gold was badly compromised just minutes into her strawweight title showdown with Zhang Weili.
Suarez, after winning her first 10 professional fights, made a quick ascent to the strawweight title shot at UFC 312. Despite entering the Octagon as a modest favorite, she struggled against Weili’s pace and pressure and wasn’t able to do much with her signature wrestling.
After Weili got off to a slow start in Round 1, she dominated the majority of the exchanges over the final four rounds. She defeated Suarez by unanimous decision to hand the talented contender her first career setback in the cage.
Midway through Round 2, Suarez cut her right leg open against the fence, as captured on the UFC 312 broadcast in between rounds. The result was a nasty gash that Suarez had to fight through against the women’s UFC pound-for-pound queen.
Tatiana Suarez sliced her knee open during grappling exchange at UFC 312
Check out Suarez’s compromised leg below, as captured on the broadcast.
Suarez’s mid-fight injury is the latest in a slew of health issues she’s dealt with in and out of the cage during her career. After beating cancer and finding early success in MMA, multiple injuries halted her activity early on in her career, including a four-year hiatus from 2019-2023.
Suarez’s nasty leg gash could potentially postpone her UFC return timeline after the loss to Weili. Before the loss to Weili, Suarez fought just twice in six years to earn the next strawweight title shot.
Suarez was supposed to face Virna Jandiroba in a No. 1 contender fight at UFC 310 before suffering an injury just weeks before the scheduled bout. She secured the title shot by finishing Jessica Andrade at UFC Nashville in Aug. 2023.
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Zhang Weili leaves UFC 312 in an awkward spot despite impressive title defense
Meanwhile, Weili’s dominant performance eliminates another top contender in the strawweight division’s title picture. She holds wins against four of the current Top 5 strawweight contenders, including in her previous title defense against Yan Xiaonan at UFC 300 last April.
Weili’s next potential fight could be against Virna Jandiroba, who was supposed to face Suarez in December. Jandiroba most recently defeated Amanda Lemos last July and is slated to face Xiaonan at UFC 314.
Weili has also hinted at a potential super fight with UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko on numerous occasions in her career. As of this writing, Shevchenko isn’t booked for her upcoming title defense after regaining the belt at UFC 306.
After dismantling Suarez at UFC 312, Weili has several intriguing options for her next fight, including a potential pursuit of becoming a two-weight champion. The UFC’s pound-for-pound queen separated herself from the rest of the pack after her latest dominant performance.