"I've always known" - Tatiana Suarez believes she has good chance to defeat Zhang Weili in potential title fight

Tatiana Suarez likes her chances in a possible championship match against strawweight queen Zhang Weili.

Weili notched the second title defense of her second reign with the 115-pound belt on April 13 against Yan Xiaonan in the first-ever all-Chinese title fight in company history.

When asked by MMA Junkie Radio about her assessment of Weili's recent UFC 300 title defense and if she felt better about her chances in a strawweight title bid against the multi-time 115 pound titleholder, Suarez said:

"I think prior to that matchup, I knew. Like I kind of know how I would do. But yeah I mean, it showed just a little bit more of her game and things like that. I thought she did well. She was able to capitalize like I knew she would. I knew she would win in the grappling department just because Yan [Xiaonan] is just not good at all on the ground.

"I have nothing against her. I mean she's a phenomenal striker but she is not good on the ground at all. So I knew that Weili would be able to outgrapple her. Yan not being a wrestler herself actually got a couple of takedowns if I can remember. I'd have to watch it again but I think she did get a couple of takedowns.

"Not like she didn't mean to, I think they just engaged and she like threw her to the ground or something. So just seeing that, it just shows me that I think that I could impose my will against her. My grappling is very, very good. So I think I'd do well just like I've always known."

Check Suarez's comments on a possible Weili title clash at the 5:09 mark below

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Tatiana Suarez and her campaign for UFC gold

Tatiana Suarez is the number one contender in the UFC strawweight ranks, so her being next in line for Zhang Weili makes sense on a meritocracy level. The last time Suarez was in the cage saw her garner a statement win over a former champion within the weight category.

Last August, Jessica Andrade was submitted by Tatiana Suarez via guillotine choke in the second round of their UFC Fight Night: Cory Sandhagen vs. Rob Font co-main event bout.

The California native is 10-0 as a professional mixed martial artist and was 3-0 as a pro MMA fighter before getting her shot on The Ultimate Fighter Season 23.

After dominant wins during that season and eventually becoming TUF 23 champion, Tatiana Suarez has been focused on becoming a lineal UFC champ since. This will could very well be actualized into reality sooner rather than later, although Weili vs. Suarez is not officially confirmed.