Las Vegas, NV — Song Yadong returned to the win column at UFC Vegas 72 on Saturday, putting away Ricky Simon in the fifth round of a fight that the Chinese bantamweight was already winning.
Yadong (20-7-1) is now 4-1 in his last five bouts, with the lone loss to another top 135’er in Cory Sandhagen. During Saturday’s main event scrap with Simon, Song looked sharp, with his corner urging him to keep the pressure on.
“I could see all he was doing. He’s too slow,” Yadong told media outlets including Cageside Press following the fight. “Sorry for saying. Yeah, actually he’s too slow. I’m too fast for him.”
After the fight, Yadong called out Sean O’Malley and Chito Vera, match-ups he reiterated his desire for backstage. Any top five opponent will do, he added.
“I want to fight top five fighters. Even [Rob] Font, he’s sixth. He’s okay. Chito Vera and Sean O’Malley. But probably they don’t give me the Sean O’Malley [fight],” said Yadong. “The UFC protects him. Whatever. Just top five.”
O’Malley is widely believed to be next in line for the title, after champ Aljamain Sterling faces off with Henry Cejudo next weekend. Yadong actually holds a win over Vera, who is coming off a loss; their 2020 match-up went to the scorecards.
Asked if former champ Petr Yan would be of interest, Yadong replied “Of course. Actually, people just asked me that question. Yeah, I want to fight him. I just forgot. I just forgot to call him out.”
In terms of a return, Yadong doesn’t want too much time off it seems, though some recovery will be necessary. “I think around August, or July,” he stated on that front. “It depends on how my body feels.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 72 post-fight press conference appearance by Song Yadong above.
