Chinese fighter Wang Cong's Joker face paint aims to unsettle rivals before UFC title bout

Chinese UFC fighter Wang Cong has built a distinctive pre-fight ritual: dyeing her hair green, whitening her face and drawing a wide red grin across her cheeks, a look fans often compare to Batman villain the Joker.

The 34-year-old told BBC Sport the persona is actually inspired by the joker playing card, which she sees as the most powerful card in a deck — reflecting her own ambition to be the most powerful fighter. She says the face paint allows her to sense fear in her opponents and helps her perform better, describing it as close to her true personality rather than a costume.

On Saturday, at UFC 332 in the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Cong — on a four-fight win streak — faces Brazil's Natalia Silva for the vacant flyweight world title. The title became vacant after former champion Valentina Shevchenko was forced to withdraw last month due to injury.

Silva, 29, ranked number one in the UFC flyweight division, enters the bout on a 14-fight win streak across various promotions and is considered the favourite. Cong, ranked sixth, admitted she was initially surprised to be chosen for the title shot, but noted that higher-ranked fighters were either already booked for other bouts or had just recently competed.

The matchup marks the first women's UFC main event since January 2025, when Mackenzie Dern defeated Amanda Ribas. Cong said it was meaningful to represent women's MMA during a period of reduced female representation at UFC's top events. A win would make her only the second Chinese UFC champion, after former strawweight title holder Zhang Weili.

The decision to make this bout the main event drew criticism from some fans on social media, who argued other fighters deserved the top billing instead. Cong responded briefly to the criticism, saying she expects it to stop once her fight is over.