Silva vs Wang at UFC 332: the belt nobody lost
On October 3 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Natália Silva and Wang Cong fight for a flyweight title that came open without a punch being thrown. The bout has been called the weakest headliner of the autumn. The numbers say something else.
Silva vs Wang is an unbeaten fighter against one who has lost once.
- Fight Hub
- 19 September 2026
Key takeaways
- Valentina Shevchenko gave up the belt with ligament damage to her shoulder and back; her coach says at least eight months out, the promotion has said up to a year.
- Natália Silva is unbeaten in eight appearances since arriving in 2022; Wang Cong comes in on four straight wins.
- It is the first time women's flyweights headline a numbered card, and the first women's main event of the CBS and Paramount era.
A belt handed back, not taken
Valentina Shevchenko was due to defend against Natália Silva on October 3. Ligament damage to her shoulder and back ended that. Rather than freeze the division through her recovery, the champion vacated.
The timelines do not quite agree. Her coach puts her on the sidelines for at least eight months. The promotion has spoken of an absence of up to a year. Either way, the gap was too long to keep a whole division waiting.
Silva keeps her title shot, against a different opponent. Wang Cong moves up after beating Tracy Cortez, and finds herself fighting for a world title in her sixth appearance for the promotion.
What a vacant title changes
Nobody is defending anything. Both fighters start level, and whoever wins becomes champion without having faced the woman who held the belt. That is the precise point the criticism turns on.
Silva vs Wang: what the numbers say
Natália Silva carries a professional record of 20 wins, 5 losses and 1 draw. Since joining in 2022 she has not lost: eight fights, eight wins, three of them against former champions.
Wang Cong stands at 10 wins and 1 loss in eleven bouts. She is 168 cm tall with a 169 cm reach, against 163 cm and 165 cm for her rival: five centimetres of frame and four of reach to the Chinese fighter. Silva is 27, Wang is 32.
The complaint about the booking comes down to one word: decisions. Silva’s last five wins went the distance. So did Wang’s last four. Two fighters who win on the cards, over five rounds, is what worries people.
Losing, though, is something neither of them does. An unbeaten run of eight against a fighter with one defeat in eleven is not an accident of matchmaking.
About the criticism, it's a little annoying. But I'm sure that all the fighters the UFC put on the card are ready to have a great fight, you know?
The promotion is committed, and so is a former champion
The card was attacked from the moment it was announced, with one analyst calling it the worst main event in recent memory. Deiveson Figueiredo, who fights Payton Talbot in the co-main event, answered plainly.
There is a calculation behind the booking. This is the first time women’s flyweights lead a numbered card, and the first women’s headliner since the move to CBS and Paramount. A vacant belt, two fighters who barely lose, five rounds: the bet is on the fight rather than the names.
October 3 will settle it. Until then, full records, measurements and fight histories for both women are in the FightHub app, with the card updated as announcements land.
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