Zero surprise on this one: Song Yadong earned a Performance of the Night bonus at UFC Shanghai for his shocking finish of Umar Nurmagomedov.
Had you suggested, on Friday, that China’s Song might come away with a decision victory in the Fight Night card’s main event, you might have been questioned a little, but the notion was not out of the realm of possibility. A blistering knockout of a 20-1 fighter who had never before been stopped? That likely would have been met by disbelief.
Come Saturday morning for those watching in the west, that unlikely scenario was reality. After surviving one takedown and stuffing one or two others, Song put Nurmagomedov away in a sequence that began with an uppercut that just caught the Dagestani along the ear. A couple of punches later and Umar was out cold, Song was celebrating, and the fans in China, who hadn’t had much to celebrate about to that point, were on their feet.
Song earned one of two Performance bonuses for his efforts, pocketing $100,000 U.S. in doing so. The second went to Bilal Hasan, who opened the main card in style, knocking out Nilson Rojas with a single punch. Hasan was making a quick turnaround, having won himself a UFC deal on Dana White’s Contender Series earlier this month.
The Chinese contingent in Shanghai had a rough day at the office on Saturday, with Yan Xiaonan, Aoriqileng, Long Xiao, Xiong Jing Nan, Meng Dong, and Hong Kong-born Lawrence Liu all suffering defeat. Outside of Song, only Sumudaerji and Liu Ce picked up wins — but Song and Liu in particular made fans forget all about the night’s other letdowns. Paired up with Levi Rodrigues Jr, Liu Ce picked up a knockout win in the first round. Yet Rodrigues had been hanging in there, throwing some big shots of his own in a fight that seemed as if the two athletes had agreed in advance to simply choose violence and swing away.
A thriller while it lasted, Ce and Rodrigues earned Fight of the Night honors at UFC Shanghai.
The remaining finishers on the card — Denise Gomes, Kai Asakura, Andre Lima, Rei Tsuruya, Francesco Nuzzi, Hector Santiago, and Julia Polastri — all earned an extra $25,000 for their stoppages.
