Tag: Song Yadong

Spinning Back Clique: BKFC 41 and Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz’s arrest, Song Yadong’s arrival, more

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique” live stream covering the biggest topics in combat sports, like BKFC 41, Nate Diaz and UFC 288.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts. This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Danny Segura and Dan Tom will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate:

  • The UFC was in action this past Saturday, but so, too, was BKFC – and it made by far the bigger splash. BKFC 41 near Denver featured a main event of [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag] vs. former UFC and Strikeforce champion [autotag]Luke Rockhold[/autotag], plus a co-main event of former UFC and Bellator champ [autotag]Eddie Alvarez[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Chad Mendes[/autotag]. The card also featured Ben Rothwell, Bec Rawlings – and [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] was there as a fan, then faced off with Perry! What is happening here?! Was this the start of the BKFC takeover?
  • [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] has been in the news. He turned himself in to police in New Orleans, was booked and released and now awaits the next process after an arrest that stemmed from footage of him choking a man unconscious. Diaz’s side said the man was a fellow fighter who came at Diaz, and Diaz merely acted in self defense. What are our thoughts on the scuffle.
  • Not to be forgotten, UFC Fight Night 223 went down in Las Vegas. It wasn’t a crazy card on paper, but in the main event, [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] planted his flag as a bantamweight title contender with a dominant fifth-round finish of Ricky Simon. What’s Yadong’s position in the division, and at 25, what’s his timeline for when he might fight for a UFC title?
  • The UFC’s middleweight title picture seemed clear enough: Ex-champ [autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] has been booked, and presumably the winner would be teed up for [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag]. But now Aeesanya, born in Africa, but living in New Zealand, has beef with Du Plessis, a South Africa native who still lives and trains there. Is Adsanya vs. Du Plessis the way to go now because of the heat it can pull from their new rivalry?
  • UFC 288 goes down Saturday in New Jersey, and while it won’t be in the running for the best numbered card of all time, it’s solid from top to bottom and the main event is loaded with intrigue. Bantamweight champion [autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag] will put his title on the line against former two-division champ [autotag]Henry Cejudo[/autotag], who is coming out of retirement. It’s tight with the oddsmakers, but who has more to gain or lose?

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch this week’s episode in the video above.

Sean Shelby’s Shoes: What’s next for Song Yadong after UFC Fight Night 223 win?

Song Yadong positioned himself for another marquee bantamweight fight at UFC Fight Night 223, but against whom should it be?

[autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] wasn’t originally meant to headline UFC Fight Night 223, but when he got the chance on short notice, he made the most of it.

Yadong (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) put on arguably the most complete and impressive performance of his career Saturday when he stopped Ricky Simon (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) by fifth-round TKO after he scored multiple knockdowns prior to the stoppage in the bantamweight headliner, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

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It was an important bounce-back performance from Yadong, who still is just 25 and has tremendous upside as contender in the 135-pound weight class.

How should Yadong move forward with his career after this triumph? Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on his future after UFC Fight Night 223.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 post-event facts: Song Yadong climbs KO list at 135 pounds

Check out the numbers to come out UFC Fight Night 223, where Song Yadong climbed the bantamweight knockout list with a main event finish.

The UFC closed its April schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 223 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The card, which was thin on paper, saw [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) shine in the main event when he outworked and eventually finished [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag] (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) with a fifth-round TKO in their bantamweight showdown.

For more on the numbers to come out of the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 223.

Song Yadong thinks matchmakers will protect Sean O’Malley from UFC Fight Night 223 callout

Song Yadong is of the belief the UFC will have no interest in approving his callout of Sean O’Malley after UFC Fight Night 223.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] thinks the UFC will have no interest in making his callout of [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] happen after his main event win at UFC Fight Night 223.

He’s largely OK with that, though, because the surging bantamweight contender Yadong (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) sees other possibilities outside of O’Malley (16-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) following his fifth-round TKO of Ricky Simon (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) on Saturday at the UFC Apex.

“I want to fight top-five fighters,” Yadong told MMA Junkie and other reporters at the UFC Fight Night 223 post-event news conference. “Even (Rob) Font – he’s No. 6. He’s OK. (Marlon) ‘Chito’ Vera and Sean O’Malley – but they probably won’t give me Sean O’Malley. They want to protect him. Whatever. Just top five. My goal is to fight top-five fighters this year.”

Outside of O’Malley, Font or Vera, Yadong said he would also be content with a matchup against Petr Yan, who he “forgot” to call out but thinks would be a fitting pairing as he tries to take the next step at 135 pounds.

More than anything, Yadong just wants to stay active in 2023, he said. He would like to return in July or August, but said it depends on his health and whether the promotion can find him an appropriate foe.

Ultimately, Yadong hopes to build off his first main event triumph inside the octagon. He wasn’t thrilled with his showing against Simon, despite controlling the majority of the action then scoring knockdowns in the fourth and fifth rounds to set up the fight-ending TKO sequence.

“I feel my performance was OK,” Yadong said. “Not very good. I could’ve ended the fight in the earlier rounds. It was five rounds. He’s a very tough opponent. I wanted to be patient in the fight. I had a lot of chances to finish the fight earlier.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

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UFC Fight Night 223 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Marcos Rogerio de Lima tops card with $16k

UFC Fight Night 223 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 223 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $144,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 223 took place at the UFC Apex. The main card streamed on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN2.

The full UFC Fight Night 223 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

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[autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Rodolfo Vieira[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Cody Brundage[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Fernando Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Marcos Rogerio de Lima[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Trey Waters[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Josh Quinlan[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Martin Buday[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jake Collier[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Charles Johnson[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Irina Alekseeva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Stephanie Egger[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marcus McGhee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Journey Newson[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jamey-Lyn Horth[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Hailey Cowan[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2231 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $2,556,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $17,145,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

Twitter reacts to Song Yadong’s late finish of Ricky Simon at UFC Fight Night 223

See the top Twitter reactions to Song Yadong’s late TKO win over Ricky Simon in the UFC Fight Night 223 main event.

[autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] achieved his first main event win on Saturday when he stopped [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag] in the final round at UFC Fight Night 223.

After losing his previous headliner, Yadong (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) rebounded with a thoroughly dominant performance against Simon (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) that ended in a fifth-round TKO at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Check below for the top Twitter reactions to Yadong’s victory over Simon at UFC Fight Night 223.

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UFC Fight Night 223 results: Song Yadong punishes Ricky Simon with brutal onslaught for late TKO stoppage

In the UFC Fight Night 223 main event, Song Yadong blasted Ricky Simon with a banging barrage of fists.

[autotag]Song Yadong[/autotag] said heading into UFC Fight Night 223 he aimed to put on a performance that would turn heads and earn him a top 10 foe – and he may have accomplished that.

In a five-round bantamweight main event Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Yadong (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) finished [autotag]Ricky Simon[/autotag] (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) with punches at 1:10 of Round 5.

Yadong, 25, utilized technical, speedy, and powerful striking throughout the fight and found significant success on multiple occasions. Simon resorted to takedown attempts at times, but many of his attempts were unsuccessful.

In the second round, an accidental clash of heads unnoticed by Herb Dean, sent Simon to the canvas as Yadong nearly finished the fight with follow-up punches.

At the end of Round 4, Simon was likely saved by the bell when a blasting left hand from Yadong floored him to the canvas. After the bell, Simon staggered to his feet, off-balance as he moved toward his corner.

Potentially still hurt as he entered the final round, Simon ate a nasty body shot before Yadong tagged him with a similarly angled left hand. The blow folded Simon awkwardly with his legs tucked under him. Yadong pounced and hammered away as Simon flipped to be belly-to-canvas. As Simon posted up, Yadong continued to land shots. Unable to escape Simon flattened out and turned upward as referee Herb Dean saved him.

With the victory, Yadong gets back in the win column after a doctor stoppage loss to Cory Sandhagen in September. The defeat was one of only two Yadong has experienced in the promotion; the other being in March 2021 to Kyler Phillips. Yadong moves to 4-1 in his most recent five.

Simon rode a five-fight winning streak into the fight that included victories over Jack Shore and Raphael Assuncao among others.

The bout between Yadong and Simon was not originally scheduled for five rounds, but was moved from the April 22 co-main event when the original UFC Fight Night 223 main event, Renato Moicano vs. Arman Tsarukyan, fell off.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 223 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC Fight Night 223 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 223 took place Saturday with 11 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC Fight Night 223 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223: Song Yadong vs. Ricky Simon odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 223 odds and lines between Song Yadong and Ricky Simon, with MMA picks, tips and predictions.

In a bantamweight bout in the main event, Song Yadong and Ricky Simon meet at UFC Fight Night 223 — also known as UFC Vegas 72 — at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the UFC Fight Night 223: Yadong vs. Simon odds, and make our expert picks and predictions.

The prelims are on ESPN2/ESPN+ at 4:30 p.m. ET, while the main card can be viewed on ESPN2/ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET.

Song heads into this main event fight looking to bounce back after suffering a TKO – Doctor’s Stoppage last time out against Cory Sandhagen in the main event Sept. 2022. That setback snapped a 3-bout win streak, including a pair of KO/TKO wins over Marlon Moraes and Julio Arce.

Simon takes the walk with a 5-bout win streak in tow. He tapped out Jack Shore last time out in mid-July and has 3 stoppages in his last 4 bouts. The American is is 8-2 since arriving at UFC level with 4 wins by decision, a win by KO/TKO against Raphael Assuncao in Dec. 2021, and 3 submission victories.

Simon holds a 2-inch reach advantage, while Song has a 4.55-to-3.04 significant strikes landed per minute advantage. Simon is a little more accurate with his strikes at 51.79%, however, and he is by far the better fighter in terms of takedown average at 6.55 to just 0.63 for Song.

Watch  this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.

UFC Fight Night 223: Song vs. Simon odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10 a.m. ET.

  • Fight result (2-way line): Song +105 (bet $100 to win $105) | Simon -125 (bet $125 to win $100)
  • Over/Under: 3.5 rounds (Over -125 | Under -105)
  • Will the fight go the distance? (Yes +120 | No -165)

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UFC Fight Night 223: Song vs. Simon picks and predictions

Records: Song (19-7-1) | Simon (20-3-0)

Fight result (2-way line or moneyline)

SIMON (-125) is a solid play on the 2-way line as a slight favorite, as he is by far the best wrestler in this match. He’ll be looking to get Song to the mat early and often.

Simon enters as the hotter fighter, having posted 5 consecutive victories, including a submission of Shore last time out, and a 2nd-round KO/TKO of Assuncao prior to that.

Song is one of the top prospects in the bantamweight division despite a loss last time out. However, Simon is better on the canvas, and more accurate in the punching department.

Over/Under (O/U)

Playing OVER 3.5 ROUNDS (-125) is worth playing in this main event.

Simon has gone the distance in 3 of his past 6 outings, while Song has had stoppages in just 4 of the past 7. His last fight against Sandhagen was likely headed for the judge’s cards before the injury stoppage after 4 rounds, too.

In addition to the Over 3.5 Rounds, going with YES (+120): FIGHT TO GO THE DISTANCE is also worth a roll of the dice. And if you go that route, SIMON BY DECISION (+200) for method of victory on the 5-way line is worth playing for a chance to double up.

Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and us on Facebook.

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UFC Fight Night 223: Quick picks and prognostications

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the main card for UFC Fight Night 223.

MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main card for UFC Fight Night 223.

UFC Fight Night 223 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

Last event’s results: 2-2-1

Overall picks for UFC main cards in 2023: 35-29-3

Welcome to MMAJunkie’s Quick Picks and Prognostications, where I’ll be giving brief, fight-day breakdowns for UFC main cards.

With that in mind, I hope these write-ups don’t come off as curt or dismissive, as my goal here is to offer quick picks and analysis in a digestible format. All odds listed are provided by Tipico Sportsbook.

If you’d like more detailed analysis from me, then feel free to check out my weekly show, The Protect Ya’ Neck Podcast.

So, without further ado…