It was two days before Friday's weigh-in when DAZN News talked with former UFC women's strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk to preview her fight against 115-pound champion Zhang Weili at UFC 248 on Saturday night from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Before pleasantries could even begin, Jedrzejczyk set the tone by letting us know she's ready to put on the gloves and fight right then and there.
"I'm very, very good," Jedrzejczyk excitedly told DAZN News. "I checked my weight this morning, and I couldn't be happier."
Life for Jedrzejczyk couldn't have been any better heading into her tilt against Rose Namajunas back in November 2017. A win and she would've tied the record set by Ronda Rousey for most consecutive title defenses at six and trudged forward on becoming the next big female star in the UFC. A little more than three minutes later, though, her 966-day title reign came to a close as Namajunas pulled off the massive upset.
Namajunas also went on to win the immediate rematch five months later, and people started to question how Jedrzejczyk went from being so dominant to looking ordinary. She appeared to be back on track after beating Tecia Torres in July 2018, and that led Jedrzejczyk to getting a crack against current flyweight titleholder Valentina Shevchenko in December 2018. But the difference in weight proved to be too much for Polish fighter, as Shevchenko won by unanimous decision.
Having lost three of her last four, Jedrzejczyk was in a must-win situation when she took on rising contender Michelle Waterson in October. Jedrzejczyk fought brilliantly — looking like the woman who ran roughshod over the 115-pound division — and won an easy decision to earn a chance to regain the gold.
So, what's the difference between the Jedrzejczyk who lost her belt to Namajunas and the one about to do battle with Zhang?
"Because I'm happy, Jedrzejczyk said. "I'm the winner already. I was cleaning my porch and the people that are needed, the people who I used to work with are gone. And you could believe me or not, people who stepped into the octagon and if their hands are not raised, it is like a victory for them. Do the winners know you can take second place in the sport? No colleague is willing to help you when you have the worst day. People who step into the UFC octagon are winners. And I feel like a winner. I feel like a champion, and I've been calling myself a champ for the last few long years before I became a martial artist.
"I felt like it was God who chose me to do martial arts," she continued. "I feel like he was preparing me to be the UFC champion one day. It's going to happen for the second time (on Saturday). I'm just happy. I calculate more in my life. I set my priorities. The last nine weeks, I was focusing on planning for this fight in Florida at American Top Team and training back home in Poland before I came down to the United States. I'm happy now. No more toxic people, so my head is clean, and my heart is strong. I'm ready to f—ing go and win this belt back."
On paper, Zhang-Jedrzejczyk is perhaps the biggest fight in UFC women's strawweight history. Zhang (20-1) became the first Chinese UFC champion, stopping Jessica Andrade in 42 seconds at the end of August to extend her winning streak to 20. Combine that factor with Jedrzejczyk putting the division on the map, still being the marquee attraction in the weight class, along with Zhang's growing popularity around the world, and it equates to the co-main event of UFC 248 being a battle of epic proportions.
"This fight is going to be the biggest in the history of the strawweight division between a powerful champion and a hungry challenger," Jedrzejczyk said. "I will make it happen again and become the two-time champion. Believe me or not."
A Jedrzejczyk win and she'd become the first female fighter in UFC history to regain her championship. For the 32-year-old, a victory would mark her most significant achievement thus far.
"I know I will be successful," Jedrzejczyk said emphatically. "I'm the winner already. The amount of work I put into this camp, sacrificing myself, I'm already a winner to myself. That's the most important change. But winning the battle Saturday means everything to me. This one victory will be bigger than all my titles in Muay Thai, boxing, kickboxing and UFC. This one victory will trump them all. My legacy will be cemented forever."