Yadong Song is making waves in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s bantamweight division. This rising star from Team Alpha Male is proving himself to be a serious contender.
He recently demonstrated his all-terrain expertise in a unanimous decision over Chris Gutierrez. This was during the UFC Fight Night 233 headliner in Las Vegas. Song, with a record of 21-7-1 and 10-2-1 in UFC, swept the scorecards with 50-44, 50-45, and 50-45 marks. This was his fifth win in six assignments.
Gutierrez, on the other hand, didn’t pose much of a challenge. Aside from a few leg kicks and a front kick to the face, he was largely outclassed. Song dominated the center of the cage and kept Gutierrez on the back foot. He also incorporated takedowns in the second, third, and fourth rounds.
In another match, Khalil Rountree of Syndicate MMA cut down Anthony Smith with punches in the third round of their light heavyweight co-main event. Smith, with a record of 37-19 and 12-9 in UFC, met his end 56 seconds into Round 3. This was his third defeat in four appearances.
Rountree, on the other hand, was in fine form. He mixed in kicks when needed and held his own in the clinch. He walked Smith into his jab repeatedly, wobbled him with a counter right hook in the second round, and left his imprint on the match.
Nasrat Haqparast of Tristar Gym also made headlines. He put away Jamie Mullarkey with punches in the first round of their lightweight attraction. Mullarkey, with a record of 17-7 and 5-5 in UFC, checked out 1:44 into Round 1. This was his second loss in three outings.
Tim Elliott, the winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 24, stepped in as a short-notice replacement for Allan Nascimento. He choked Su Mudaerji unconscious with an arm-triangle in the first round of their bantamweight feature. Mudaerji, with a record of 16-6 and 3-3 in UFC, lost his grip on reality 4:02 into Round 1.
Meanwhile, Andre Muniz, a former Bitetti Combat champion, won a split decision over Jun Yong Park in a three-round middleweight appetizer. Muniz, with a record of 24-6 and 6-2 in UFC, executed takedowns and progressed to the back in all three rounds. He also applied some mild ground-and-pound and hunted chokes. Park, with a record of 17-6 and 7-3 in UFC, stayed composed under considerable duress. However, his bursts of offense were not enough to overcome his deficiencies elsewhere.
The loss snapped Park’s four-fight winning streak.