Song Yadong pulled off one of the biggest upsets at the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Shanghai event as he knocked out the highly favoured Russian fighter Umar Nurmagomedov in the bantamweight main event. The Chinese MMA athlete dropped former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov's first cousin with a clean right hand at 3:49 of the third round. He followed up with ground strikes before the referee stepped in.
This marks one of the biggest moments in Yadong's career as he was facing one of the best in the business. The Russian fighter entered the octagon with a 19-1 record and was being heavily regarded as the favourite. This also marks the first ever knockout in Nurmagomedov's professional career.
Yadong spent much of the opening rounds looking for opportunities while Nurmagomedov tried to use his wrestling and movement to control the fight. But in the third, Yadong found the opening he needed. The right hand landed flush and Nurmagomedov immediately went down.
The defeat is only the second of Nurmagomedov's professional career. His record now stands at 19-2, and both losses have come in the UFC. For Yadong, the win could be the biggest of his career. Beating a fighter ranked No. 2 in the UFC bantamweight division puts him in a much stronger position when the promotion decides its next title challengers. The 28-year-old Chinese fighter improved his record to 24-8-2, with one no contest.
Speaking after the bout, Yadong said: "This is the best moment in my life right now. I knocked out Umar... I'm so proud of myself."