Tatiana Suarez thinks it only makes sense for her to get the next title opportunity.
After Zhang Weili (24-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) retained her strawweight title against Yan Xiaonan at UFC 300, Suarez (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) was bumped up to the No. 1 spot in the promotion’s official rankings.
Undefeated Suarez is 2-0 since returning from an almost four-year long layoff due to injury, scoring submissions of Montana De La Rosa at flyweight, then a submission of former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade. Based on the landscape at 115 pounds, Suarez sees herself as the rightful title contender.
“They need someone to to fight for that title, and why not somebody who’s undefeated, has an amazing story, strong grappler, and something that she really hasn’t faced yet?” Suarez told ESPN. “(She needs to fight) a tall, long, rangy person that actually has very good jiu-jitsu and wrestling – something that she’s really developed, and now she’s beating everybody with her wrestling.
“So why not put her against somebody that could do just that? Not only that, but I’m undefeated in the division. You don’t have anybody in the division that’s undefeated at the top, so I think that it just makes a fun, fun matchup, and I hope that it happens.”
Weili has relied on her grappling in some of her recent wins, but Suarez is confident that she finishes the champion if the fight hits the ground.
“I think I get a submission, 100 percent,” Suarez said. “I think I will sub her – either a submission or a TKO.”
Suarez is willing to face Weili in China, or preferably at the highly anticipated UFC 306 event Sept. 16 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.
“I heard they’re going be in China in August, but that’s not a pay-per-view card,” Suarez said. “So I don’t know if maybe in September at the Sphere – that’d be amazing, especially because I am Mexican, and that’d be a good fight to have.
“Knowing Weili, she might spit out some things in Spanish and just make it even better. Everybody’s going to love her and everybody’s going to like me, and so then it’ll be a great fight to have on the card.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.
