MANILA, Philippines – When two rising stars in the UFC’s bantamweight division collide, you know there’s going to be fireworks.
China's own No. 8-ranked Song Yadong and No. 10 Ricky Simon square off in the main event of UFC Fight Night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, which that will air live in the Philippines on Sunday, April 30, at 7 a.m.
Adding to the tension is that Yadong aka “the Kung-Fu Kid” (19-7-1, 1 NC) is coming off a loss to Cory Sandhagen via TKO last September of 2022, while Simon (20-3) submitted Jack Shore via arm triangle choke in July of 2022.
Yadong is 8-2-1 in the UFC while Simon is 6-2. After this massive bout, one will have the better record and move up the rankings and is in all likelihood two or three fights away from a title shot against reigning champion Aljamain Sterling.
Simon is on a five-match win streak with his improved striking skills and gritty wrestling. He averages an impressive 6.55 takedowns per 15 minutes is impressive but will need to be smart in handling the tough Yadong.
Despite the recent loss to Sandhagen, Yadong is a dangerous fighter with a lot of power in his shots and uncanny offensive instincts as evidenced by his winning four Performance of the Night honors and one Fight of the Night award.
Yadong is at his best in his stand up game and he is wholly capable of landing huge knockout blows. If he can keep his distance and prevent Simon from those takedowns, the Chinese fighter will have the advantage.
The shorter the fight, then it favors Yadong. If it goes the distance, Simon has the advantage because that means the Chinese fighter was unable to put him away.
Sadong is one of less than 15 Asian-based fighters in the Top 15 rankings of all UFC weight classes.
UFC Fight Night will be shown live on the Premier Sports Channel on Sky and Cignal as well as on the TapGo TV streaming application, which is available for download on Google Play and the Apple Store.