A few ranked matchups dotted this card, with the main event featuring a spirited scrap between former UFC flyweight champion, Deiveson Figueiredo, and Yadong Song, in an important bantamweight bout. Lots of ranked and nearly ranked fighters left picking up the pieces in this edition of losers. All but one of the main card fights ended before the final bell.

Deiveson Figueiredo

(#5) Song Yadong pulled off a guillotine submission victory at the end of the second round in his main event against (#7) Deivesion Figueiredo. Easily the biggest finish of Song’s career, as he pushes Figueiredo to just 1-4 in his last five fights. Figgy has also missed weight in that stretch.

Now 38 years old, Deiveson could be paired up against Raoni Barcelos who is on a 5-fight winstreak and just turned 39 years old at the beginning of May. Barcelos took down a host of names in that run including former UFC flyweight champ, Cody Garbrandt, Payton Talbott, Ricky Simon and Montel Jackson.  Barcelos is 11-4 since signing with the UFC in 2018 and is still a fighter that often times flies under the radar. Solid matchup for both men here that makes sense in the rankings as much as it does in the cage. Backup fight here could be against a fighter like Payton Talbott.

Figueiredo’s next fight: (#14) Raoni Barcelos or (#11) Payton Talbott

Mingyang Zhang

(#15) Alonzo Menifield looked stellar as he weathered an early storm to upset the hometown fighter and turn in a first-round TKO thwarting the unranked Mingyang Zhang. Despite the loss and the first-round stoppage, Zhang still secured the fight of the night bonus, a somewhat rare feat, and a promising sign in the aftermath of a stoppage loss. Mingyang has now lost two in a row. He’s been stopped in both. Johnny Walker got him out of there in two, last August.  Before that, Zhang was 3-0 in the UFC with as many bonuses and finishes. The Chinese born light heavyweight has cooled off considerably since that streak.

With that fact in mind, Zhang should target Jimmy Crute for his next fight. Crute had a fight against Dustin Jacoby scheduled for late January before he tore his ACL. Zhang took some time off after his Johnny Walker stoppage loss- this was the first time we had seen him since that appearance. Perhaps Crute’s comeback and Zhang’s recovery could match up well timing-wise Both have faced Menifield and lost. Crute pulled a majority draw in early 2023 before losing via second round submission to Alonzo, a few months later. Crute is 6-4 with the promotion while Zhang is 3-2. Perfect. Crute is riding a 2-fight win streak but with all the slowed momentum, a fight like this on the main card of a fight night could be more than plausible.

Zhang’s next fight: Jimmy Crute

Tallison Teixeira

(#3) Sergei Pavlovich proved he’s still here to stay within the upper ranks of UFC’s heavyweight division, with his 39 second KO of (#15) Tallison Teixeira on Saturday. The 2024 Contender Series alum now falls to 2-2 with the UFC and has gone 1-2 in his last three. His only win in that stretch was a unanimous decision against a shell of Tai Tuivasa back in January.

Tallison’s next win has to give him legitimacy within the division. Not too much harm done in this loss, as it was a large leap, but he needs that signature win, all the same. Teixeira should fight the loser of Rizvan Kuniev vs. Tyrell Fortune. That fight will go down on July 25th, a ways away, but Tallison got stopped anyways.

Tyrell Fortune is a former Bellator standout that is currently 1-0 in the UFC. His debut was a very legitimate unanimous decision victory opposite of Marcin Tybura. Rizvan is 1-1 in the UFC. The 2024 Contender Series product dropped a split decision in his debut to Curtis Blaydes. Rizvan defeated Jaliton Almedia in his last fight back in February before the heavyweight was bizarrely released by the promotion (riding a 2-fight losing skid and 8-3 with the promotion).  Giving Teixeira the loser of this bout makes a lot of since as he’ll likely keep a ranking.

Teixeira’s next fight: (#8) Rizvan Kuniev vs. (#10) Tyrell Fortune loser

Cameron Smootherman

Former Rizin champion, Kai Asakura, finally got into the win column within the UFC Saturday. It took Kai under two minutes to smoke Cameron Smootherman. Smootherman is now on a 3-fight losing skid. He’s 1-3 in the UFC with his only win coming against Jake Hadley (who is no longer with the UFC).

Cameron’s next fight should be against Aoriqileng. Aoriqileng fought and lost on the undercard of UFC Macau. He was also finished with strikes. Aoriqileng is 1-2, 1 NC in his last three bouts. His only win in the stretch came against Cody Gibson who is seated in a bit of a hot seat himself. Cameron has to be careful here. So does Aoriqlleng, who is a 5-year vet of the promotion. He’s 4-5, 1 NC with the UFC. This fight is one of the numerous fights that could be made for a guy like Cameron Smootherman. This division is deep; fans should expect any name here. But Smootherman can’t necessarily afford another loss.

Smotherman’s next fight: Aoriqileng

Carlston Harris

Jake Matthews turned in an excellent body of work in the form of a unanimous decision victory over Carlston Harris on the main card of UFC Macau on Saturday. Jake’s striking was just too much for Carlston who has now lost three in a row and is 4-4 in the UFC since being signed in 2021. Worth mentioning here, but Jake was originally supposed to face Muslim Salikohv before his opponent withdrew from the bout.

Carlston’s next fight should be against Nicloas Dalby. Certainly couldn’t make the case for it to be the absolute best person for Harris to fight but, it’s not absurd. Nicolas turns 42 later this year, while Carlston turns 39 next month. Dalby has had a 10-year stint with the UFC and his 8-5-1, 1 NC during the stint. Nicolas is 1-2 in his last three with his most recent fight being a split decision victory over Saygid Izagakhmaev in November of 2025. Dalby was supposed to take on Jerimah Wells on May 16th before an injury forced him out of the bout. Wells actually faced and was submitted by Harris in the pair’s bout in 2023. Fight could make a lot of sense in this context.

Decent backup would be Victor Valenzuela who is 1-0 with the UFC against Max Griffin, who is no longer with the promotion.

Harris’s next fight: Nicolas Dalby or Victor Valenzuela

(#11) Alex Perez and (#NR) Sumudaerji

The main card of UFC Macau opened with a truly gruesome scene for viewers as the first bout resulted in a no contest after a low blow. Perez was left heaving over a bucket after repeated fouls by Sumudaerji. This was an important matchup as Alex Perez took on an unranked and surging, Sumudaerji- who was riding a 3-fight win streak heading into the cage. Perez, on the other hand, was 1-2 in his last three and coming off of missing weight but getting a victory over Charles Johnson (the last man to defeat Sumudaerji).

This would be a decent one for the promotion to run back.

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Round 1 – Yadong immediately took the center of the cage and started pressuring Figueiredo, who stayed patient waiting for counter opportunities. Through the opening minute, the only real offense came from a leg kick by Song as both fighters carefully felt each other out.

Song stayed composed and methodical, continuing to chip away with leg kicks while trying to draw reactions out of Figueiredo. Figueiredo answered with a teep kick and a leg kick of his own, but largely remained on the back foot. He eventually exploded forward with a quick right hook before immediately getting back out of range.

Song kept stalking forward, following Figueiredo around the cage while targeting the legs and body. Figueiredo attempted a takedown midway through the round, but Song easily stuffed it without much trouble.

As the pressure increased, Song began landing cleaner shots while forcing Figueiredo backward. Figueiredo briefly thought about another shot before the two reset once again in the center of the octagon.

With under 30 seconds remaining, Song threw a head kick that missed badly and caused him to slip to the canvas. Figueiredo quickly jumped into top position to close the round.

Not exactly the best look for Song heading into the break.

Round 2 – Yadong went right back to applying pressure in the second round, while Figueiredo tried to slow things down by circling laterally and forcing Song toward the fence while throwing wild kicks from range.

Song cracked Figueiredo with a clean right hand as the former flyweight champion briefly considered shooting for a takedown. Moments later, Figueiredo threw a body kick that Song caught before taking him to the mat. Song landed heavy right hands from the top before Figueiredo scrambled back to his feet.

Figueiredo then ate a clean straight right from Song that got a loud reaction from the crowd. Song continued chopping at the legs while cutting the cage off effectively against his opponent. Song rushed forward again, and when Figueiredo attempted another takedown, he instead ran directly into another hard right hand as the fight stayed standing.

Song landed another leg kick that opened up an opportunity for Figueiredo to shoot in on a takedown, but Song immediately locked up a guillotine choke.

The Urijah Faber coached contender cinched the submission so tightly that Figueiredo tapped almost instantly once the choke was fully locked in.

Song Yadong ended up scoring the first and only victory for China on the night.

Official Result: Song Yadong def. Deiveson Figueiredo via R2 SUB (Guillotine), 4:42

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The UFC Macau main event offers the opportunity for one headliner to return to the win column, as both men enter off single losses. For Song Yadong, that came back in January opposite ex-champ Sean O’Malley. For former flyweight champion Figueiredo, he dropped a fight to Umar Nurmagomedov last time out.

A couple for former flyweight title challengers also feature on the card, as Kai Asakura faces Cameron Smotherman (at bantamweight), while Alex Perez takes on Su Mudaerj. The co-main event, meanwhile, finds Chinese light heavyweight Zhang Mingyang paired up with Alonzo Menifield.

All fighters made weight for UFC Macau. Results can be found below.

UFC Macau: Song vs. Figueiredo Weigh-In Results

Main card

Bantamweight: Song Yadong (136) vs. Deiveson Figueiredo (135.5)
Light Heavyweight: Zhang Mingyang (205) vs. Alonzo Menifield (206)
Heavyweight: Sergei Pavlovich (257) vs. Tallison Teixeira (250)
Bantamweight: Kai Asakura (135.5) vs. Cameron Smotherman (135.5)
Welterweight: Jake Matthews (170) vs. Carlston Harris (170.5)
Flyweight: Alex Perez (125.5) vs. Su Mudaerji (126)

Preliminary card

Middleweight: Lee Yi-sak (185) vs. Luis Felipe Dias (184.5)
Welterweight: Ding Meng (170.5) vs. José Henrique Souza (170.5)
Bantamweight: Aori Qileng (135) vs. Cody Haddon (135)
Bantamweight: Rei Tsuruya (135) vs. Luis Gurule (135)
Women’s Strawweight: Angela Hill (115) vs. Xiong Jingnan (115.5)
Featherweight: Zhu Kangjie (145) vs. Rodrigo Vera (145)
Women’s Strawweight: Loma Lookboonmee (115) vs. Jaqueline Amorim (115.5)

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UFC Macau sees Figueiredo facing off against China’s own Song Yadong in enemy territory, looking to get back in the win column after losing a decision to Umar Nurmagomedov in January.

Figueiredo also headlined in Macau in November of 2024, losing to Petr Yan. It’s been a rough patch since, with the Brazilian’s overall record falling to 1-3 in his last four bouts starting with the Yan fight.

“This fight with Song, I’m going to show that I’m still here, I’m still fighting well, I’m still on the run for the title,” Figueiredo (25-6-1) told media on hand in Macau in Wednesday. “I feel 100% physically and mentally, and I’m going to show everything on Saturday.”

The odds are not in Deiveson’s favor at age 38. Yet while it has been a rough patch, Figueiredo wanted to underscore during the UFC Macau media day that the Yan fight, for one, had been an anomaly.

“I just want to make one thing really clear, I was not 100% for that fight against Petr Yan,” Figueiredo said during translator. “And right now I’m 100%. I’m very dangerous and very prepared.”

As for Song Yadong, who enters UFC Macau off a loss to “Sugar” Sean O’Malley, “Song’s a guy that always comes to deliver a great fight,” stated Figueiredo. “His fight with Sean O’Malley was great. I feel like Sean didn’t necessarily face him that much, but I think that Song always delivers.”

Watch the full UFC Macau media day appearance by Deiveson Figueiredo above.

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Nurmagomedov, having lost one title bid to Merab Dvalishvili, was now pursuing Petr Yan, with former flyweight champion Figueiredo looking to do the same. The wrench in the works? “Figgy” had missed weight for the bout, by 2.5lbs.

Nurmagomedov came out as the aggressor in round one pressing Figueiredo to the fence. The former champion stayed on the outside as Umar threatened multiple kicks to the body and head. Figueredo initiated a grappling exchange but was unable to secure at takedown. Nurmagomedov shot a takedown of own but Figueiredo attempted a guillotine choke to get back to his feet. Ducking under a punch Nurmagomedov was able to secure a takedown and secure positional control for the majority of the round.

In the second, Nurmagomedov landed two kicks in the first thirty seconds. Attempting another kick Umar fell and Figueredo was momentarily in top control. Reversing the position Nurmagomedov returned to his feet after an impressive scramble. Umar remained the more active fighter throughout the round, exchanging big blows with Figueiredo up until the horn sounded.

To start the third Umar pressed the action with kicks to the head and body, forcing Figueredo to fight off the back foot. Retreating around the cage Nurmagomedov was able to land a jab followed by a straight left in combination. With three minutes left Nurmagomedov was able to land a takedown near the fence. With plenty of time to work Umar was in full guard landing big shots on the former flyweight champion. For two more minutes Nurmagomedov remained in top control pounding away at Figueredo while trying to advance position.

All three judges scored this fight for Umar Nurmagomedov, who afterwards celebrated with his team featuring cousin Khabib and current welterweight champion Islam Makahchev.

Official Result: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Deiveson Figueiredo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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“No, I don’t feel even he going to be next. Maybe after these fights we’re going to fight for the title,” Nurmagomedov told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.

“Merab and Petr maybe will fight rematch. For me doesn’t matter. Any option, I’ll be ready.”

“You know it means like, we’re not friends, and we’re not enemy,” Nurmagomedov said.

“It’s going to be big fight for our country. Two guys fighting for the title, and that’s it.”

Watch the entire media day interview with Umar Nurmagomedov above. He faces Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 324 on Saturday night.

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Seeing another Brazilian former champion in Deiveson Figueiredo also earning a W was a nice bonus for the home crowd, too. With UFC Rio now in the books, let’s look at what’s next for Oliveira, Figueiredo and the other winners from Saturday’s event.

Charles Oliveira

Not even four months removed from his brutal KO loss to Ilia Topuria, the only reason “Do Bronxs” came back so quickly was to fight in his home country of Brazil. Often times, after such a bad loss, older fighters get hesitant to engage and march forward, but not Oliveira. He walked Mateusz Gamrot down, showed him no respect, and sliced through him on the ground. A vintage Do Bronxs performance that warmed the hearts of his fan base.

Oliveira then called out a fellow future Hall of Famer and former foe, Max “Blessed” Holloway. This battle of the fan favourites has been brewing for some time, but I don’t think the timing will ever work as perfectly as it would right now. Two legends of the sport who were bound to rematch and are a perfect fit for the BMF title. It sucks that one of them will have to lose, but at this point, this fight books itself.

Oliveira’s next fight: Max Holloway

Deiveson Figueiredo

Figueiredo, the other former champion on this card, also earned a win in the co-main event. Knowing Figgy will turn 38 in two months, was coming off consecutive losses for the first time in his career and he was facing a younger opponent who had won six straight, the odds were stacked against him. He came in as a sizeable betting underdog, but his veteran savvy allowed him to escape this fight with a split decision victory. It wasn’t his best performance nor was it his best opponent, but this is the type of win that only the true greats are able to pull off. When it seems like they’re on the way down, they remind you they can still compete with and defeat quality fighters.

While seeing him get his hand raised was nice, this fight didn’t tell me that we should throw Figgy back in title contention. I wouldn’t be opposed to have him fight upwards against names like Sean O’Malley or Song Yadong, but it appears there’s a good chance those two end up fighting each other. If Umar Nurmagomedov beats Mario Bautista in unconvincing fashion, there’s a chance he’ll have to fight again before getting another title shot, in which case Figueiredo would be a good name to throw at him. However, I think the most sensical option is probably to have him fight Aiemann Zahabi, should he beat “Chito” Vera next weekend. Zahabi would be on a seven-fight win streak, but without the kind of marquee name that would truly send him into title contention. Figueiredo also needs another win before getting throw to the wolves again. In other words, they would need each other.

Figueiredo’s next fight: Aiemann Zahabi (if victorious vs Marlon Vera)

Joel Alvarez

The 32-year-old Alvarez put on a drubbing on Vicente Luque, earning 30-26s across the board. Despite the loss, Luque put an end to Alvarez’s perfect finishing rate. Knowing Luque has talked about brain bleeds in the past, the Spaniard perhaps took it easy on the beloved veteran in the third round. Regardless, this was a mauling performance in Alvarez’s welterweight debut. Luque is clearly post-prime, but he’s still a quality name to add to Alvarez’s win streak and a fitting divisional debut. Another known veteran who seemingly has a bit more left in the tank is Neil Magny. After winning a second straight fight two weeks ago, Magny sounds like a great test to see how far Alvarez can go in his new division.

Alvarez’s next fight: Neil Magny

Mario Pinto

After showing his devastating knockout power in his promotional debut and Contender Series bout, Mario Pinto now showed he can wrestle as well. He went three for four on takedowns, got to full mount and landed ground-and-pound shots on Jhonata Diniz until the referee was forced to call it off. At 11-0 and just 27-years-old, Pinto is a breath of fresh air for this heavyweight division. Usually, I would be in favour taking our time with a prospect this young and interesting, but this shallowness of the heavyweight division makes me want to push him up a lot faster. That’s why I think a fight with Marcin Tybura makes a lot more sense than it should.

Pinto’s next fight: Marcin Tybura

Kaan Ofli

After dropping fights to Mairon Santos and Muhammad Naimov, Kaan Ofli came into this fight in hot waters, probably needing a win in order to stay in the promotion. Getting the backpack and forcing the tap out of Ricardo Ramos in the first round was just what the doctor ordered for him. There are a bunch of names at 145 lbs that you could throw at Ofli, I went with another Brazilian: Joanderson Brito.

Ofli’s next fight: Joanderson Brito

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