UFC Macau: Petr Yan vs. Deiveson Figueiredo: Full results
UFC Macau is done and dusted with elite bantamweights Petr Yan and Deiveson Figueiredo paired up for the main event of the card, which took place in Macau, China. The main card saw six fights take place in total, with another seven fights going down on the preliminary card.
Let's take a look at how the main card unfolded, as well as the results of the prelims of UFC Macau, as the headlining clash saw the winner now in poll position to fight for gold in his next fight.
The main event saw two former champion clash in a thrilling matchup for a rumored number one contender position. The opening round saw brief exchanges on the feet before a well-timed inside trip from Figueiredo saw the fight hit the ground for the majority of the five minutes, in a round that would be difficult to score from a judge's standpoint.
The second round saw Yan dominate the opening few moments on the feet before 'Deus da Guerra' rallied back and landed some notable strikes of his own. A sweet inside-trip from the Russian with several seconds left in the round saw the fight momentarily hit the canvas before the bell.
Round 3 saw the most significant moment of the fight as 'No Mercy' caught Figueiredo with a sharp uppercut that sat him down. The former flyweight champion recovered as the fight returned to the feet. But Yan surged with several minutes left and began landing powerful punches in combination.
The penultimate round began in a more measured fashion, with action having slowed slightly. The Russian's domination on the feet continued but he was unable to land as many clean strikes on his opponent. With less than 30 seconds left, Figueiredo dropped his opponent with a right hand, leading to a wild flurry to close out the round.
With the fight going to the judges' scorecards, Yan was awarded a unanimous decision win to potentially earn the next bantamweight title shot.
Round 5 saw the Brazilian come out stronger than the previous two rounds, as he sensed the need of a finish to secure victory. 'Deus da Guerra' dominated large portions of the striking exchanges, with the pair trading strikes until the final bell sounds.
The co-main event of the night saw Tabatha Ricci step up in competition as she faced off against former title challenger Yan Xiaonan, who had the full support of the UFC Macau crowd behind her. Xiaonan's striking skillset allowed her to dictate the range of the fight through the opening two rounds, as she appeared in control of proceedings despite a brief submission scare in Round 2.
The final round saw the action continue on the feet, as the No.2 ranked strawweight contender continued her domination en route to a unanimous decision win on the scorecards.
The featured bout of the evening saw Song Kenan and Muslim Salikhov duke it out in the welterweight division. The action began early on as the pair traded strikes, before an unbelievable spinning heel-kick knockout from Salikhov landed on the button and put his opponent out cold.
As the UFC Macau fight card produced memorable moments one after the other.
The first female fight of the main card saw striking expert Wang Cong face Gabriella Fernandes. After an exciting opening round contested on the feet, it was the Brazilian who landed a flush head kick in Round 2 to signal the beginning of the end. After landing a crisp straight-left hand that dropped Cong, Fernandes secured a rear-naked choke submission win.
The second bout of the main card saw another 205-pound matchup, as Carlos Ulberg looked to extend his winning streak to seven. Round 1 saw a competitive striking match between the pair, as both men landed telling blows throughout.
Round 2 saw much of the same, with neither man interested in taking the fight to the ground. The final round followed in the same vein as the previous two rounds, with Ulberg being awarded a unanimous decision win after dominating much of the 15-minute fight.
The first fight of the main card at UFC Macau wasted little time in continuing the violence gifted to fans in the preliminary card. Zhang Mingyang faced off against Ozzy Diaz in a light heavyweight clash.
Both men traded thudding leg kicks early on as they tried to find their striking range, before Mingyang landed a perfectly-timed step-in elbow that sent his opponent crashing to the canvas. A few follow-up punches were all that was needed for the referee to stop the fight in Round 1.
UFC Macau - Main Card results:
Bantamweight - Petr Yan def. Deiveson Figueiredo via unanimous decision (50-45 X 3)
Strawweight - Yan Xiaonan def. Tabitha Ricci via unanimous decisio (30-27 X 3)
Welterweight - Muslim Salikhov def, Song Kenan via KO (R1, 3:49)
Flyweight - Gabriella Fernandes def. Wang Cong via submission (R2, 3:49)
Light Heavyweight - Carlos Ulberg def. Volkan Oezdemir via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Light heavyweight - Zhang Mingyang def. Ozzy Diaz via KO (R1, 2:25)
Preliminary card results:
Bantamweight - You Su-young def. Baergeng Jieleyisi via unanimous decision
Flyweight - DongHun Choi def. Kiru Sahota via KO (R1, 2:36)
Strawweight - Shi Ming defeats Feng Xiaocan via KO(R3, 0:46)
Flyweight - Carlos Hernandez def. Nyamjargal Tumendemberel via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Flyweight - Lone’er Kavanagh defeats Jose Ochoa via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Bantamweight - Long Xiao def. Le Quang via KO/TKO (R3, 01:28)
Lightweight - Nikolas Motta def. Hayisaer Maheshate via unanimous decision (30-27 X 3)