ZHANG WEILI: Exclusive UNTOLD Life Story
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 มิ.ย. 2024
- Zhang ‘Magnum’ Weili is a mixed martial artist, she is the former UFC Women's Strawweight Champion and is the first-ever Chinese champion in UFC history.
Zhang was born in Handan, Hebei, China. She started training in martial arts at a young age, beginning at 6 with Shaolin Kung Fu under the tutelage of a local master, after she was inspired by Kung Fu films. When she was 12, her parents sent her to a specialized martial arts school in Handan where she began training in Sanda and a Chinese style of wrestling called Shuai Jiao. Her life led her down many different career paths which took her from working as a front desk receptionist to teaching and eventually becoming a UFC Champion.
Join us today for a spinning backfist of an episode with the Fruiting Body Podcast, Zhang joins us to talk about her upcoming fight with Carla Esparza at UFC 281. We discuss the preparations needed for a championship fight, why she has chosen to train in Thailand at@bangtaomuaythaimma and how each coach has a different influence on her fighting style as well as winning mentality.
Finally, find out more about Zhang’s Shaolin training, the difference between Sanda & Muay Thai and what she wishes to be remembered for in her legacy as a leading Chinese Woman in the sport of MMA.
#zhangweili #ufc281 #fruitingbodypodcast
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⏳TIMESTAMPS ▼
00:00 - Intro
02:03 - Teacher to UFC Champion
03:47 - Shaolin School
06:21 - Finding the Right Coach
08:23 - Sanda vs. Muay Thai
09:13 - Training in Phuket
10:54 - 5 Star Marine (Sponsorship)
11:40 - Josh Hinger
13:40 - Kōng bēizi 空杯子(Empty Cup)
15:17 - UFC 281 vs. Carla Esparza
16:17 - Hickman Brothers
17:34 - Tony Ferguson
19:04 - Master & Student
20:23 - Remember My Spirit
22:53 - Zhang Weili’s Outro
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Zhang by KO, not sure what round I’d guess 3 or 4 tho!
Weili all day!
Zhang TKO in first 2 rounds
I think Weili gets the TKO 1st round ...not to be rude but Carla is looking out of shape and I guarantee she's been mote focused the past 6 months making money in the side from events. Carla winning the title can be compared to when Andy Ruiz Jr. Won ... short lived and over hyped, and she probably didn't focus 100% on her fighting career.
Weili every day of the week. Is the intro song a cover of "all along the watchtower" by hendrix?
A huge thanks to Zhang Weili for taking time out of her busy schedule training at Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA. Can't wait to watch her fight on Nov.13th against Carla Esparza and capture the UFC Women's Strawweight Title once again!
Thanks for interviewing my favorite fighter. She really follows the code: dedicated, humble, and respectful. She's also really sweet, so it's crazy that she turns into such a killer in the ring. Can't wait for Saturday when she gets her belt back. Also, it's awesome that you guys speak Mandarin and were able to give Weili the chance to truly express herself, because she deserves that as much as anybody else. A great example for so many people here in the US who think they can't or shouldn't become multilingual. Much respect!
Thanks for your Kind words and we hope you can subscribe to our Channel for a future podcast with Weili once she is back in Thailand! Please share to friends an family!
Zhang Weili is by far my favorite fighter to watch. Not just for the women but mma in general. I love that you made a concerted effort to really get to know her as a person and her mind. It would be fantastic to have her on again!
We will try to have her back after she wins the title and she comes back to Thailand after China new year
@@FruitingBodyPodcast excited for that!
Thank you for interviewing my favorite fighter! 🇨🇳🙏🏽
Zhang Weili is always respectful to her opponents and isn’t interested in “trash talking marketing” before the fight. She lets her skills do the talking inside the octagon.
I also admire her resiliency and drive to be always the better version of herself. Even she won the belt in the past, she never lost focused and continued training harder.
When she lost the belt, she worked 10x harder to get this opportunity to fight for it again.
If you watch documentaries about her you will see what it takes to be a world champion and I tell you, I got tired just by watching her. All this champions in the UFC are champions because they breathe and bleed MMA! 💪🏽🥊
Yes she is extremely dedicated to her craft! I've been watching her train for over 3 months and just wait to see what she has ready for Carla ... 1st Round KO for sure!
Thank you for this. Last year and this year, mma media subjected her to false narratives and hate. Even now people are arguing that she doesnt deserve a title shot. Great interview and I really enjoyed learning more about one of my favorite fighters.
I was in here HIIT class for 3 months doing some basic translations for the class and she is an absolute legend. I don't see any reason to dig deep for hard hitting questions ... my intention of this podcast is to understand the guest for who they are and attempt to understand them on a personal level.
Interviews and podcasts today only focus on whats trending and trying to get hot topics out of people ... I prefer to made timeless content that anyone can watch again in 10 years and it's still relevant.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast You've done a phenomenal job. One of the best interviews with Weili out there hands down!
@@jinkarasu5685 It comes down to the long history of anti China narratives that accelerated by Trump & turned into the Asian hate for the last 2-3 years.
Love Zhang weili works hard, adds new skills to every fight. what more can a fight fan ask for? amazing
She's an absolute legend! can't wait for her title fight at UFC 281 :)
Can we have this guy translating at UFC?
ahhaa let Dana White know and we can send him over there :)
i know, right? he'd be way better than weili's current translator. definitely not as good as fabiano ~gigachad~ buskei, but still
@@cvspvr her current translator sucks ass bruh lol hopefully let's get this guy
+ + +
Hello Mr. O'Neill! This was a fantastic podcast with great well thought out and unique questions. Amazing conversation! Its truly an honor to get to know more about Ms Zhang.
Thank you so much! I really tried and wanted this interview to be timeless. No need for the typical hard nose pushing questions.... we wanted Zhang to open up and show her fans who she really is.
I can see why she's always improving, she mentioned that she needs to keep her cup empty for new techniques. Its very rare for fighters or even athletes to be thinking about learning new things when they are that good. And it shows, the improvements from her last three fights are very evident.
Ya I have been watching her train for over 5 months or so in Thailand and just wait until you see her POWER!
It's legit scary listening to her hit Pads at the gym ... I feel bad for her trainers.
I like her feeling that way because that's a very old Bruce Lee's saying, to empty your mind and using the empty cup & can't hold tea if the cup is full example. Now she needs to learn to "become water & flows like one" aka combine her striking skills with her grappling & wrestling skills in a non telegraphic manner as well as being unpredictable. I don't like her recently keep saying she fights striker as a striker and wrestler as a wrestler just to prove she is better than her opponent & to improve herself that way. Her skills should be used based on the moment of what should be most appropriately and should not be about deploying the same style against your opponent. That's immature idea and feeding too much into that silly warrior spirit thingy. It maybe good for movie not for real life.
@@YCHTT I think you got her wrong or what she’s trying to say was lost in the translation. Cos that’s not what she meant if you know mandarin. What she really meant was she’s taking challenges and trying to improve herself by learning new things and the skills she’s not that good at.
@@user-hd5lz7qp9p very well said
@@user-hd5lz7qp9p I'm no doubt that's what she want to achieve overall but she said it in multiple interviews (including this one) about fighting strikers with striking and wrestlers by wrestling as a means to prove herself and improve her skills. So you are 100% wrong & all your groupie trying to agree with you are not even listening also nor want to listen. Again not everyone having the ability to maintain objective.
Great interview, so difficult to find anything on weili in the US. Thank you 🙏
Thank you for subscribing much appreciated.... hope we get another interview after he victory next year when she comes back to Thailand
She inspires me everyday, her spirit and personality are so bright I love watching her evolve, and succeed. Let go Weili ❤️🏆
加油
Thanks for doing this! Big fan of Weili and I'd have to say one of the most entertaining fighters in WMMA. I think she's really misunderstood and it's great to see another side of her. You guys did great! Hope to see her back.
Thanks for your kind words and subscribing! If you can share to friends and family that would be much appreciated.
We want to bring more eyes to Weili and show the world who she truly is ... a champion!
She was misunderstood because no one care to really try to get to know her partly due to the language barrier. That's why show like this is very important & badly needed.
Love it !! Thanks for the amazing interview!
Thank you!!!!
Great work! I have been a fan of Weili since her tecia torres fight. Thank you for taking the time to let fans like me get to know her better.
No problem and I will try to do another in February.
We also did one with jiri prochazka
Very nice interview! Thank you for taking time and effort making this video
Thank you :) Hope you can help to subscribe and share ... We plan to have another interview in Late February once Weili is back in Thailand.
Subscribed and looking forward to watch more interviews of her 😊
Much appreciated! Please share if you can :) it will help the channel grow quickly ... We plan to get another interview in Late February once she is back at Bangtao Muay & MMA in Phuket, Thailand.
Awesome pod! this is very well done. Zhang Weili jiā yóu
Thank you very much!
Wow this is the best podcast I’ve seen yet with zhang weili
Thank you so much! SUBCRIBE!
Zhang Weili - Adorable Badass 😍
I became a Fan of #ZhangWeili after Seeing-Her 42-Sec KO of Jessica Andrade~~~& Weili-Saying, ***My name is Zhang Weili ; I'm from China ; Remember-Me***
She is an absolute force! I've been lucky enough to watch her train over here at bangtao muay thai and mma , and her work ethic and dedication is on another level.
We also interviewed jiri prochazka before he win the belt while he was training here.
Certain Atheletes just stand out at the gym and there is a reason they are champions.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Like Bo Nickal?
I still can't believe she's the only UFC Champion from Asia with how many martial arts have originated from there.
I mean you could count Cung Le as well, he's originally from Vietnam but he and his family fled to the US after the fall of Saigon in 1975....he also has a background in Sanda
But I think the reason there's so few Asian fighters in the UFC is purely due to access, UFC is after all am American thing, in Asia they used to have K1, then Pride and now they have OneFC which is their version of UFC and in China they have the Kunlun Fighting Championship which is like the Chinese K1.... So they've got their own fighting Federations that side, if it's closer for them to compete in OneFC then why would you go all the way to America to compete in UFC you know.
Zhang "Magnum" Weili! Nov 12 cant come soon enough. Great pod as well. You had Jiri and Weili. Talk about high level fighters
Thanks a lot! Wait until you see who we have next ... thanks for subscribing and get ready for some massive guests over the next few months
at UFC 268 (rematch vs rose) i was cheering so loud for weili....couldnt believe how many people were booing her. Not sure if it was because being from china or the excuses she gave when she got head kicked up I didn't care. I love her so much and honestly thought she won even with rose laying and praying in round 5
It's probably more due to the fact that Rose is American ... It isnt necessarily a BOOO against Weili, but more just the hometown crowd.
It would be the same if she was in Brazil fighting a hometown hero.
I can guarantee you the fact that she was from China has a lot to do with it. In the US the amount of anti China propaganda narratives & make up talking points daily is astonishing. Even England wasn't that bad. Imagine someone since birth who was getting all these false & negative idea of a country & their people. It's only normal to form negative biases & dislike someone coming from there. On top of that she was against an American fighter. Of course everyone could be booing her for difference reasons. But denying that part of the reality is simply not understanding how easy we can be brainwashed & manipulated by what we were told everyday.
What a great interview. A lot of deep questions asked.
Thank you!!!!
Crazy nice podcast cant wait to see next Weilis video
Thank you ! We will try to have a 2nd podcast when she is back in March
Great interview. It's really inspiring.
Thanks for your kind words!
There are no Esparza fans Just Zhang Weili haters! Go Zhang Weili # TEAMMAGNUM2022CHAMP
Let's go!!! 加油
weili earned my respect. I see hard work in her. she is embodiment of that
Can't wait for her next fight vs. Lemos
@@FruitingBodyPodcast absolutely. I watched the fight of rose vs Carla. I must say that was a whole another level beyond me as a mma or fight fan. I prefer old mma fights more. weili fights are so satisfying to watch for me as an mma fan.
the energy, aggression, performance, determination, all on display.
Tell me how you got Zhang Weili and I'll subscribe. You only have 2K subs and you KILLED THE QUESTIONS. Depending on your list of guests coming on in the future and how underrated they are in their sport and being able to hear their voice I can definitely see you getting 1M subs in less than a year from now. The questions were awesome who am I kidding I'll sub 🤣
Thanks a lot for the support!
We just started a year or so ago and I train at bangtao muay thai and MMA.
I was able to get Zhang on the Podcast because during our HIIT classes in the morning, for about 3 months, I was helping with basic translations from English to Chinese. I used to live in China for 5 years, so I have situational Chinese ... good enough to communicate.
The other fighters like Jiri I was able to connect at the gym as well and simply asked his coach if he would be interested.
In terms of all my other guests ... just researching interesting people on the island of Thailand and connecting..... tomorrow I will film with a guy named Florian Dagoury who has the record for the longest breathe hold (10 mins).
Im dialed in at the moment and will make this a top podcast globally within 2 years.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast do you have an Instagram too??
@@A1._.-_- yes .... @fruitingbodypodcast
Zhang weili even posted on her Instagram feed my interview with her ... LFG!!!!
thanks for the interview. Xiao Pang JIA YOU!!!!!
Hope you enjoyed it!
장웨일리 너무멋쪄요 ❤❤
I thoroughly enjoyed this in depth interview. Weili is so likeable and respectful of her craft. I also feel the same about Carla. I see Weili overpowering Carla to reclaim the title.
Ya her striking is going to overwhelm Carla :)
I ❤ ZHANG WEILI
She was amazing to give us this time for the interview.
Your Mandarin is pretty good for having previously lived there for 5 years (and out of practice for however long)!
Also, do you know why she was holding what looks like a wooden cane?
I was the host but my friend Pete did translations ..... his is on another level.
Mine is pretty basic and I consider situational mandarin.
She is holding a Tanzanian wooden club .... here is an article www.alamy.com/wooden-club-and-walking-stick-belonging-to-a-maasai-on-the-beach-zanzibar-unguja-island-tanzania-image328456445.html
🤩🤩🤩
Wow first minute in is 🔥
Thx bud! We cut it down from 45 mins to 23 mins.
This was definitely the hardest podcast I've ever done.
I froze under the lights and my Chinese was all forgotten hahaha ... I should have had a few beers to get into a flow state.
How can anyone dislike weili
USA Media can because she cant respond well when challenged ... and USA Media loves this China vs. America Narrative. Useless reporters
@@FruitingBodyPodcast thank you for pointing this out!
some of the translates are a bit off. but still a great interview
Ya we filmed this over 3-4 weeks ago and tried our best to match the translations.
To be honest if we were to provide literal translations it would be a bit cut and dry, so we tried to expand a bit on Zhang's meaning.
She is so amazing!
Such a legend!
Lol great title, good pod
Haha thx! Inspired by @xiaomanyc channel
I love Zhang Weili as a person and as a fighter. Its sad to see people like John Hyon Ko who trained with her give Carla Esparza a chance in this fight. Totally disrespectful and hypocritical person. Weili will steam roll Esparza and be a long reigning champion
Ya most likely KO 1st round ... I think she comes out swinging
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Submission is better xD
What do you think of John Hyon Ko disrespecting Zhang Weili by saying theres too much pressure on her to finish Carla and that its a closer fight then people think?
Hmm I was not even aware of this.
This guy that speaks Chinese have a very interesting southern Chinese accent
Very good call ... we both lived in Shenzhen, China.
Pete lived there for 15 years and I lived there for 5 years.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast sweet, thanks for the interview. Great work guys
非常好的訪問謝謝
謝謝你！
Beautiful .lady heart of a 🦁 ❤
At what time you speak chinese?
Be cheering for her in December 🏆🇨🇳
Her fight is at UFC 281 on November 12th in New York.
Ya just about over a week away! Lets go!!!!
Oops my bad, thanks for the correction I thought her fight was at UFC 282. 🤣
I think this is Weili's easiest fight since she is humble enough to learn from the best coaches.
Wrestling might be an issue .... but I think her striking will counter balance Carla's take downs. Also her take down defense is very strong ... Carla might grab a round if she gets a take down ... but I don't think she doesn't damage. Most likely Zhang will finish her in the 1st round if she can land a couple quick power shots .... I've seen her training and my Gad her kicks are scary .... the loudest noises in the gym when Zhang is hitting pads
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Weili took Joanna down and dominated her on the ground. And Carla couldnt land a single takedown in her fight with Joanna. Thats why I think Weili has better wrestling than Carla
@@FruitingBodyPodcast I’m jealous!! Wish i were there watching her training she looks so cool and sweet at same time
0:13原来张伟丽25岁才开始练习，太厉害了
3:24原来张伟丽还受伤五年没有规律练习。。。不容易阿
很酷
💪💪💪💯%👍👍👍😉😉😉🤗
Otlichno super 🥰🥰🥰🥰
💪🏿
謝謝你
Xiaopang JIAYOU
LETS GO!!! Cant wait to see the belt back in Thailand :)
He translated Weili's mandarin Chinese into Taiwanese Chinese lmao 🤣🤣🤣
Haha we both lived in Shenzhen so his accent his southern chinese
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Cool! Hope you two had a great time over there. As a Chinese, welcome, welcome! But his southern Chinese accent definitely sounds a bit different lol
@@will4881 ya Pete lived in Southern China for over 15 years. Maybe the most fluent foreigner I've ever met speaking Chinese.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Awesome...come back anytime!!!
do you realise the so called taiwanese accents actually coming from southern china?! especially from xia men in fujian. LOL
And new!!
What a victory!
Beginning some sounds like Jimi
hahaha who is Jimi ?
@@FruitingBodyPodcast I meant to put “song” not some and Jimi Hendrix
@@arthurandrade8191 ahh yes ... thats our intro theme! Unreal tune!
all I want to know is what she's planning to do with that native american style club
Do you mean Carla's wrestling? She has been training at Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA which is heavy wrestling gym in Phuket, Thailand.
George & Frank Hickman are her wrestling coach + Josh Hinger is her BJJ coach ... She is ready for the challenge and I think she gets a 1st round KO.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast Enjoyed the podcast. I think Ola Sarcasm was referring to the club she was holding in her lap.
First round KO? I thought (and hope) she was going to show off her wrestling - perhaps a G&P KO?
Any idea as to when she arrives in Las Vegas?
@@youngsunfloyd5520 haha ok that club ... actually it's from Tanzania and there is a tribe there that uses it to kill lions to join man hood... week the story is longer than that but I'll let you all Google it.
She is already in Vegas and on route to New York since UFC 281 is at MSG
man i dont like that she left Henry and wish you asked more deeply what happened there
We want to focus more on the mind of Ms. Zhang .... there will always he controversy between fighters and training partners, and that will face away into the night. Our time was very limited and translating back and forth made this even more hard
I was wondering why Henry didn't sit down & watch the fight in his stream. Now I know...
Weili by knockout
Yap 1st
I-Watched for the 2nd-Time, Very-Interesting again~~~Just like *All-Along the Watchtower* = Always-Good!!
Glad you enjoyed it
并不是25岁才开始 是从小就开始练武了
謝謝
Incorrect, you heard it wrong yourself! She said she started learning professional fighting & MMA at the age of 25, do go listen again. They obviously knew she learned martial art at young age, were you not listening to them talking about her studying at her wushu school near Shaolin temple?
你听错了
@@user-hd5lz7qp9p 你听错了
His Mandarin is not bad. But FAR from perfect...
lol well thats the sillest thing i've ever heard ... what ya smoking bud? Pete's Chinese is the best i've ever heard from a foreigner .. it's even better than some chinese people.
@@FruitingBodyPodcast It's really far from perfect. And China has over 1.4 billions people and they all speak in different accents, surely he can speak better than some Chinese who doesn't go to school & speak local dialect with broken mandarin. You can also find foreigners who speak better English than the local (England, USA, Australia etc) but that's doesn't mean those foreigners speak perfectly. It just means that local was really bad. Your friend did make some translation mistakes during the interview. Not hating on you or him but just facts. Again well done & thanks for the interview that most Americans in the business do not give a care. Wish you success on the channel and bring Weili back again.
@@YCHTT but I don't understand why people are pointing that out, of course no one will ever be 100% perfect at speaking a second language.... The irony here is if a white person had to point out that a Chinese person's English isn't perfect they'd be called a racist
"perfect Chinese"? Dude it's not bad but you have to be honest it's far from perfect
You're far from honest ... that guy loved 15 years in china and has the best Chinese I've heard from a wai Guo Ren... I challenge anyone to have a Chinese off
@@FruitingBodyPodcast what's the prize? xD
Well... Like... Duuuuhh... It's not his first language my guy, of course no one is going to speak a second language 100% perfectly.... Just like how people who speak English as a second language will always have an accent, the same applies to people that speak other languages as a second language
Sucat pelat boog
huh?