Yadong
Song will likely bear the evidence of his encounter with
Cory
Sandhagen forever.
The 30-year-old Sandhagen kept his spot in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight line, as he
prompted a cut stoppage against the fast-rising Team Alpha Male
contender in their
UFC Fight Night 210 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in
Las Vegas. The end came between the fourth and fifth rounds, and it
certainly seemed justified.
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The fight was competitive from start to finish. However, Sandhagen
(15-4, 8-3 UFC) landed the signature blow in the second round,
where he stepped into an elbow strike in the center of the cage and
hacked open a ghastly diagonal gash above his counterpart’s left
eye. Song (19-7-1, 8-2-1) fought through adversity initially, but
the cut only widened and deepened as the bout progressed. By the
time Round 4 was over, it became clear that he should go no
further.
Resilient Rodrigues Dismisses Njokuani
Former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Gregory
Rodrigues overcame a horrific horizontal cut between his eyes
to put away Chidi
Njokuani with punches in the second round of their middleweight
co-main event. Rodrigues (13-4, 4-1 UFC) brought it to a dramatic
close 1:27 into Round 2. Njokuani (22-8, 2-1 UFC) walked the Brazilian into a brutal knee
strike to the face in the first round—accompanied by an audible
crack, the impact sliced opened a gash that stretched from one eye
to the next—and swarmed for a possible finish, blood streaming from
the wound. Rodrigues refused to back down, returned fire and
eventually hurt the onetime Tachi Palace Fights titleholder with
right hands, clinch uppercuts and elbows. Njokuani had little left
in the tank at the start of Round 2.
Rodrigues bullied him to the canvas, postured in a kneeling
position and let his hands go until the job was done.
Rodrigues, 30, has won six of his past seven bouts.
Fili Subdues Replacement Algeo
Team Alpha Male’s Andre Fili
rebounded a 41-second stoppage loss to Joanderson
Brito on April 30, as he eked out a split decision over former
Ring of Combat champion Bill Algeo in
a three-round featherweight showcase. All three judges scored it
29-28: Derek Cleary and Sal D’Amato for Fili, Chris Lee for
Algeo.
Fili (22-9, 10-8 UFC) set the tone with a strong first round, where
he blasted his counterpart with a pair of head kicks, one of which
opened a sizeable cut at the top of his forehead. Algeo answered by
upping his aggression in the second, leaning on punching
combinations, stout leg kicks and a stiff jab. However, Fili undid
much of the Pennsylvanian’s good work in Round 3, as he executed a
takedown, threatened with an arm-triangle and eventually moved to
the back. There, he set his sights on a rear-naked choke, his
advances denied only by Algeo’s sheer unwillingness to go down
quietly. The loss snapped a two-fight winning streak for Algeo
(16-7, 3-3 UFC), who filled in for Lando
Vannata on short notice.
Pyfer Wrecks Reeling Amedovski
Former Ring of Combat champion Joseph
Pyfer
celebrated his birthday in style and punched out Alen
Amedovski in the first round of their middleweight attraction.
Amedovski (8-4, 0-4 UFC) checked out 3:55 into Round 1, as he lost
for the fourth time in as many appearances inside the Octagon.
Pyfer (10-2, 1-0 UFC) pressured the Macedonian backward and ate a
few shots while probing for openings. He pushed Amedovski toward
the fence, threw out a feeler of a left uppercut and followed it
with a devastating right cross. The American Top Team rep hit the
deck in a seated position, glanced up at Pyfer with empty eyes and
took another punch to the face before referee Chris Tognoni arrived
on the scene.
The 26-year-old Pyfer has finished his last three opponents.
Nascimento Edges Undersized Boser
Takedowns and positional control spurred American Top Team’s
Rodrigo
Nascimento to a split decision over former Unified MMA champion
Tanner
Boser in a three-round heavyweight feature. Judges Junichiro
Kamijo and Adalaide Byrd struck 30-27 and 29-28 scorecards for
Nascimento, while Douglas Crosby saw it 29-28 for Boser.
It was a rather pedestrian exercise. Boser (20-9-1, 4-4 UFC)
staggered the Brazilian with a left hook in the second round and
followed up with a multi-punch volley in a bid to finish. Those
efforts came up short, and Nascimento (9-1, 2-1 UFC) cut off any
further advances with a well-timed takedown. The Dana White’s
Contender Series graduate made the most of his 32-pound weight
advantage in the third, where he executed a takedown roughly a
minute into the period and remained in top position until a referee
restart put the two men back on their feet with 33 seconds left on
the clock. It was not enough time for Boser to swing the narrative
fully in his favor.
The win was Nascimento’s first since May 16, 2020.
Hernandez Arm-Triangle Silences Barriault
Former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Anthony
Hernandez choked Marc-Andre
Barriault unconscious with an arm-triangle choke in the third
round of their middleweight showcase. Barriault (14-6, 3-5 UFC)
went to sleep 1:53 into Round 3, suffering the first submission
defeat of his career.
Hernandez (10-2, 4-2 UFC) seized the reins at the start and refused
to relinquish them, breaking down the Canadian with pressure and
pace. He connected with crisp combinations on the feet and
delivered repeated takedowns, complimenting them with positional
control, ground-and-pound and occasional submission attempts.
Barriault appeared to suffer a rib injury late in the first round,
further diminishing his chances in a fight he was already losing.
Hernandez enjoyed a dominant middle stanza and dumped him to the
mat in the third.
Once there, the Californian worked his way into position for the
arm-triangle choke and let his squeeze do the rest.
The 28-year-old Hernandez has rattled off three straight victories,
two of them by submission.
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