Dana White & Co. continue to expand their roster by signing Chinese MMA legend to the promotion. Earlier this week, the MMA world buzzed when the social media page “MMA Scientist” shared rumors that the UFC was in “talks” to sign Jingnan Xiong. After some back and forth, multiple MMA media outlets have now confirmed those rumors.
Recently, MMA content creator Kevin confirmed that the deal is done, revealing that Xiong has officially inked her contract with the UFC.
“Jingnan Xiong has officially signed with the UFC, per the promotion,” wrote Kevin on X.
Now, beyond announcing former ONE strawweight champion Jingnan Xiong’s signing, the UFC has already set her next fight. According to the latest update from Dutch MMA journalist Marcel Dorff, Xiong will face UFC veteran Angela Hill at UFC Macau on May 30. The UFC has also listed the bout on its official website, while platforms like Tapology have confirmed it.
Interestingly, the timing works perfectly for the UFC. Just last month, Asia-based promotion ONE Championship parted ways with Xiong. The promotion not only removed her from the roster but also scrapped the entire division, with many fighters already moving to atomweight in recent years.
During her time in ONE, Jingnan Xiong became the inaugural women’s strawweight world champion and defended her title seven times. She also stayed undefeated for seven years. On top of that, she established herself as one of the first prominent Chinese female world champions in MMA, cementing her legacy as a trailblazer in the sport.
Angela Hill will fight Xiong Jingnan at #UFCMacau on May 30th. #UFC #MMA #UFCParamount #UFConParamount #UFC2026 pic.twitter.com/gm9FwQh27g
— Marcel Dorff
(@BigMarcel24) April 10, 2026
However, her opponent holds equal significance. Despite Angela Hill’s record of 18 wins and 16 losses, she still remains a true trailblazer for Black women in MMA. She became the first African-American woman to win a fight in the UFC after she made her debut in 2017. She also broke barriers by becoming the first Black woman to headline a UFC card during her fight against Michelle Waterson in 2020.
Now, shifting focus back to Jingnan Xiong and ONE Championship, the promotion’s recent moves, interestingly, raise serious questions. Over the past few years, several of its top champions have left the organization. At the same time, ONE also canceled its last two events in the United States. Just last month, the promotion canceled ONE Denver (ONE 174) for the second straight time, further showing that things are not running smoothly behind the scenes.
On top of that, the situation gained even more attention last year when fighters like Reinier de Ridder and Mikey Musumeci left the promotion. De Ridder, in particular, openly expressed his frustration with how the promotion handled matters.
Reinier de Ridder explains his decision to quit ONE and join UFC
When Reinier de Ridder left ONE Championship last year, it sparked plenty of back-and-forth between the MMA star and ONE CEO Chatri Sityodtong. The ONE CEO accused de Ridder of avoiding fights under the promotion and leaving for the UFC for money. However, de Ridder kept his claim straightforward: he wanted to stay active in competition as he was already approaching his 40s and aiming to remain active in his career.
“That was basically what I was missing in ONE at the time,” Reinier de Ridder told MMA Junkie, “because they didn’t offer me any fights anymore at the end. So it’s something that I really asked for: Please keep me active. And I think because of the way the fights went — because I’ve always come out uninjured, I was able to finish all the fights- basically every time after the fight, two days later they’d call me… I’d say, ‘Yes.’”
Now, the same issue seems to apply to Jingnan Xiong as well. As a former ONE champion, she has only fought three times since 2023, which also raises concerns about ONE Championship’s consistency in providing top fighters with regular matchups. This issue also appears to affect other big names, including Adriano Moraes and Zebaztian Kadestam.
So, what’s your take on the UFC’s recent signing spree of former ONE veterans? Do you think it will give Dana White & Co. a competitive edge? Drop your thoughts below.
