Wang Cong believes an early eye poke played a major role in her slow start during her UFC 332 title fight against Natalia Silva.
Cong fell short in her bid to capture the vacant UFC women’s flyweight title on Saturday night in Salt Lake City.
Silva claimed the championship with a unanimous decision victory after controlling much of the fight, although Cong rallied late and found success in the championship rounds.
The title became available after former champion Valentina Shevchenko vacated the belt while recovering from injury. Despite Cong’s strong finish, all three judges scored the contest in Silva’s favor.
In her first statement since the defeat, Cong admitted she was disappointed with the result and revealed that an eye injury affected her performance early in the fight.
“Thank you for supporting me, my friends,” Cong wrote on Instagram. “The fight is lost. What a pity. I have some regrets because in the first round, my eye was poked. My vision was affected, and I couldn’t see clearly after being poked in the right eye. It slowed me down, and I entered the fight too slowly.
“Where you fall, you get back up. I will go back, review everything, learn from it, and come back stronger. Come on, try again.”
The comments add context to what many fans saw as a cautious opening from the Chinese contender before she increased the pressure in the later rounds.
Interestingly, UFC CEO Dana White shared a similar assessment after the event. White suggested Cong would likely be frustrated with herself for not pushing the pace earlier, believing a more aggressive start could have changed the outcome of the fight.
The Eye poke led to slow start narrative appears to align with Cong’s own reflection, as she believes the vision issue prevented her from settling into the contest as quickly as she wanted.
Despite the setback, Cong remains one of the top contenders in the division. She entered UFC 332 riding a four-fight winning streak, with victories over Tracy Cortez, Eduarda Moura, Ariane da Silva, and Bruna Brasil earning her the title opportunity.
For now, Silva sits atop the flyweight division, but questions remain about her first title defense. Former champion Shevchenko is still recovering from injury and has already made it clear she intends to reclaim the belt once she is medically cleared.
As for Cong, she appears focused on learning from the experience and working her way back into title contention. If her late-fight surge at UFC 332 is any indication, the 34-year-old may not be far from another shot at UFC gold.
