Petr Yan reminded his peers he still possesses all the tools that could someday see him return to power in the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division.
“No Mercy” outboxed, outfoxed and outhustled Deiveson Figueiredo to a five-round unanimous decision in their UFC Fight Night 248 headliner on Saturday at Galaxy Arena in Macau, China. Yan (18-5, 10-4 UFC) swept the cards with identical 50-45 scores from the judges, further distancing himself from the three-fight skid that plagued him from April 9, 2022 to March 11, 2023.
Figueiredo (24-4-1, 13-4-1 UFC) had no answer for the volume and variety the former 135-pound titleholder brought to bear. Yan kept him off-balance with feints and stance switches, creating openings for his finely tuned offensive weapons. Biting leg kicks, accurate punching combinations and slashing uppercuts at close range tipped his spear, but he also found time to mix in a few flying knees, a spinning backfist and a jumping switch kick. Figueiredo returned fire in spurts but could not throw the Russian off his mark in a 25-minute shutout.
Meanwhile, Team Alpha Male star Xiaonan Yan rebounded from her April 13 defeat to reigning champion Weili Zhang and outstruck an overmatched Tabatha Ricci to a lopsided unanimous decision in the three-round women’s strawweight co-main event. All three members of the cageside judiciary scored it the same: 30-27 for Yan (19-4, 9-3 UFC).
Ricci (11-3, 6-3 UFC) failed to manage distance properly and found herself woefully outclassed in the standup exchanges. Yan kept the Brazilian on the end of her punches and kicks, her confidence and comfort growing by the second. Ricci managed to complete a takedown in the second round but lacked the wherewithal to keep the Shenyang, China, native under wraps. Once Yan returned to her feet, she immediately picked up where she left off and continued to administer a sustained beating with probing one-twos, intermittent kicks and jarring counter right hands.
The setback snapped a two-fight winning streak for Ricci.
Further down the main card, Muslim Salikhov disposed of Black Tiger representative Kenan Song with a spinning wheel kick in the first round of their welterweight showcase. Song (22-9, 6-5 UFC) met his end 3:49 into Round 1, losing for the third time in four outings.
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Salikhov (21-5, 8-4 UFC) tenderized his adversary’s lower lead leg with repeated kicks and zeroed in on the body with a variety of attacks. Song buckled the Russian’s knees with a sneaky left hook but failed to back it up with anything meaningful and allowed the 40-year-old to escape potential danger. Salikhov later found the range to his liking and leveled “The Assassin” with a perfectly timed and expertly placed wheel kick. He snuck in one last standing-to-ground hammerfist before referee Mark Craig could arrive on the scene.
The ageless Salikhov now has 14 first-round finishes to his credit.
Elsewhere, MMA Masters standout Gabriella Fernandes sprang one of the year’s biggest upsets and put the previously undefeated Cong Wang to sleep with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their women’s flyweight feature. Fernandes (10-3, 2-2 UFC) closed it out 3:49 into Round 2, nailing down her second win in as many appearances.
Wang (6-1, 1-1 UFC) was comfortably in control up until the stunning finish. She called upon sharp combinations, brutal body shots and exquisite head movement, appearing to build a lead on the scorecards. Late in the second round, Fernandes wobbled the decorated kickboxer with a head kick, kept her balance and decked her with a crushing straight left. She trailed Wang to the canvas, maneuvered behind her and slipped the choke into place. Fernandes readjusted her grip, flattened out “The Joker” and let her squeeze do the rest.
It was the second rear-naked choke submission of Fernandes’ 13-fight career.
Further down the main card, City Kickboxing export Carlos Ulberg moved one step closer to contention with a unanimous decision over Volkan Oezdemir in their three-round light heavyweight attraction. All three cageside judges scored it for the once-beaten Ulberg (11-1, 7-1 UFC): 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.
Oezdemir (20-8, 8-7 UFC) mostly held his own in the standup exchanges and enjoyed some success with thudding leg kicks. However, he often used his face as a shield—the Allstars Training Center rep bore cuts across the bridge of his nose and near his right eye—while giving chase against an elusive opponent. Ulberg countered beautifully throughout and landed a majority of the consequential blows, staggering his Swiss counterpart more than once in the first two rounds.
The 34-year-old Ulberg now finds himself on a seven-fight winning streak.
Finally, Xinjiang Fight Gym product Mingyang Zhang brought down former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Osman Diaz with a standing elbow strike and follow-up punches in the first round of their light heavyweight appetizer. His star on the rise at 205 pounds, Zhang (18-6, 2-0 UFC) drew the curtain 2:25 into Round 1.
Diaz (9-3, 0-1 UFC) was not afforded the opportunity to get in gear. Zhang tested the waters with low kicks, set his range with a few multi-punch bursts and felled the Brazilian on the counter as they closed in on one another. He floored Diaz with the elbow and pounced with punches until the job was done.
Zhang, 26, has rattled off 11 straight victories, all of them finishes.
In preliminary action, Lone’er Kavanagh (8-0, 1-0 UFC) kept his perfect professional record intact with a unanimous decision over Jose Ochoa (7-1, 0-1 UFC) in a three-round flyweight tilt, drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 scores from the cageside judges; Su Young You (14-3, 1-0 UFC) cruised to a three-round unanimous decision over Jieleyisi Baergeng (18-6, 0-1 UFC) in the “Road to UFC” Season 3 bantamweight final, carrying the cards with 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 scores; Dong Hun Choi (9-0, 1-0 UFC) wiped out Kierandip Singh Sahota (12-3, 0-1 UFC) with a clean right hook 2:36 into the first round of their “Road to UFC 3” flyweight final; Ming Shi (17-5, 1-0 UFC) cut down Xiaocan Feng (10-3, 0-1 UFC) with a head kick 46 seconds into the third round of their “Road to UFC” Season 3 women’s strawweight final; Carlos Hernadez (10-4, 3-3 UFC) was awarded split scorecards—29-28, 28-29, 29-28—over Nyamjargal Tumendemberel (8-1, 0-1 UFC) in a three-round flyweight tiff; Long Xiao (27-9, 1-0 UFC) put away Quang Le (8-2, 0-2 UFC) with punches 1:28 into the third round of their bantamweight affair; and Nikolas Motta (15-5, 3-2 UFC) took a unanimous decision from Maheshate Hayisaer (10-4, 2-3 UFC in a three-round lightweight pairing, earning 30-27 marks across the board.
