Petr Yan picks up first win since 2021, defeats Song Yadong at UFC 299
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to us tonight, March 9, 2024, for UFC 299, a 14-fight card going down from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Headlining the event is bantamweight championship rematch between Sean O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) and the only man to ever defeat him, no. 5 ranked Marlon Vera (23-8-1).
Co-headlining the event is a lightweight encounter between no. 3 ranked former interim champion Dustin Poirier (29-8, 1 NC) and no. 11 ranked Benoit Saint-Denis (13-1, 1 NC).
Opening up our main card tonight was a bantamweight scrap between no. 4 ranked former ACB and UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan (17-5) and no. 7 ranked Song Yadong (21-8-1, 1 NC).
Following a 15-1 start to his MMA career, avenging his only defeat prior to joining the UFC’s 135 lb roster, Yan had since gone 1-4 going into tonight’s bout, beginning with a DQ defeat to Aljamain Sterling in their title fight. He’d then claim the interim title in his next fight with Cory Sandhagen (UD), before losing back-to-back split decisions to Sterling in their rematch, and then Sean O’Malley.
This led up to his latest appearance, where he was shut down by no. 1 ranked Merab Dvalishvili over the course of their five-round encounter 363 days ago.
Song Yadong on the other hand had gone an impressive 10-2-1 through his 13-fight promotional tenure.
Continue reading to see how this bantamweight encounter went down:
Official Result: Petr Yan def. Song Yadong via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Yadong lands a heavy leg kick once the bout begins, before backing Yan up with a stiff jab. Yan lands an overhand right about one minute in, Yadong remaining unfazed by it. Yadong really let his hands go as the round went on, landing heavy shots, eventually catching a kick from Yan and putting him on his back.
Yan had a much better round two, landing a lot of nasty uppercuts and hooks in close. Yadong spammed him with takedown attempts and followed up with punches of his own nearly every time Yan engaged. Yan timed a beautiful takedown in the final 30 seconds of the middle stretch and ended the round on top.
Both men land a lot of effective shots in the third and final round; Yan’s were slightly more technical and had the better combinations, though Yadong still returned fire nearly every time he was hit. Yadong was keeping the threat of the takedown there, and initiated one in the final minute of round three, ultimately ending up on his back.
The fight ended with Yan locking up a D’Arce choke as Yadong was attempting to get back to his feet.
Petr Yan has always been a slow starter, and he’s always gotten better as his fights go on, much like one half of tonight’s main event Marlon Vera does. Song Yadong opened up strong, but the former champion made the correct adjustments and picked up his first win since 2021.
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