Zhang Weili almost submitted Yan Xiaonan at the end of the first round in their historic all-Chinese UFC 300 main card title bout moments earlier. The women’s strawweight champion caught her opponent’s neck in a solid rear-naked choke, with almost ten seconds remaining in the bout.

So good a grip did Weili manage to secure on her fellow Chinese compatriot that Xiaonan went to sleep momentarily. The referee, however, did not stop the bout and allowed a groggy and almost out-of-it Xiaonan to continue to the next round.

However, the insightful commentary team featuring Daniel Cormier, Joe Rogan, and Jon Anik were quick to catch on to something. Cormier claimed after the end of the first round, the challenger’s corner gave her smelling salts to wake her up. This led Rogan to wonder aloud, “Are you allowed to do that?”

Anik, the UFC’s lead play-by-play commentator, however, clarified that this was not the case and that ‘Nine’s Corner had, in fact, not given smelling salts to wake ‘Nine’ up. While the subsequent rounds saw Xiaonan have some success, Weili taking the challenger to the canvas and asserting her authority on the ground emerged as the theme of the rest of their fight.

Zhang Weili pulls off a unanimous decision victory over Xiaonan at UFC 300

After a fantastic first round, Zhang Weili went on to win the second round in an even more emphatic fashion, dominating Yan Xiaonan on the feet and the ground. ‘Nine’ showed tremendous heart, making it through the round. Just as the challenger’s hopes looked to be fading, she made a resurgence in the third. While Xiaonan did enough to manage to win the third on all three judges’ scorecards, that was the only round she managed to overcome the champion. Despite catching a second wind, the #1 ranked contender succumbed to the champ as she took her back in the last minute of the fourth.

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While the last two rounds belonged to Weili, she did look a bit fatigued. However, the UFC’s first Chinese champion persisted and proved why she is the champion, managing to put Xiaonan on the ground again and working from the top in the fourth and fifth. It was no surprise, therefore, to hear Bruce Buffer read out a 49-45, 49-45, 49-45 scorecard in favor of Weili, who emerges the winner and still the women’s strawweight champion.

In the post-fight octagon interview with Rogan, the champion gave Xiaonan her props, praising her as a great fighter. While the bout was a largely one-sided affair, the UFC’s first Chinese fighter showed a lot of heart and did a commendable job of hanging in there despite everything thrown at her. Check out our live blog for the UFC 300 results and analysis.