Fight Night on song

Even marred by setbacks for the host contingent, the Ultimate Fighting Championship's return to Macao has proved to be a smashing success as the mixed martial arts promotion has elevated the combat sport's profile in China.

Song Yadong of China celebrates after winning the bantamweight bout of main card match against Deiveson Figueiredo of Brazil at UFC Fight Night in Macao, south China, May 30, 2026. (Xinhua/Cheong Kam Ka)

On what would otherwise be a disappointing night for Chinese fans, Song Yadong saved the best for last. The bantamweight striker capped off UFC Fight Night Macao with a bang by securing a submission victory over Brazil's former world champion Deiveson Figueiredo in their main event on Saturday.

Heading into the highly anticipated finale between Song and Figueiredo, the 13-bout Fight Night had turned deeply disappointing for the home crowd, with four other Chinese fighters having all lost in their respective bouts on the preliminary and main cards, leaving the sold-out Galaxy Arena in silence and Song under huge pressure to salvage the night.

Song, China's highest-ranked men's fighter in UFC across all divisions, did not disappoint.

Rising to the moment with poise and finesse, Song pulled off the fight of his career with a guillotine choke early in the second round that forced former flyweight titleholder Figueiredo to submit, sending the Macao crowd into a frenzy.

It was Song's 23rd career win as a professional MMA athlete, and his 12th under the UFC banner in 17 bouts in the Octagon since signing up with the Las Vegas-based promoter in 2017.

Entering the Macao event as the fifth-ranked contender in UFC's bantamweight, Song is expected to keep climbing the rankings, and has cemented himself as a serious challenger for the belt currently held by Petr Yan of Russia.

After witnessing his compatriots' earlier losses, particularly light heavyweight scrapper Zhang Mingyang's shocking TKO defeat to Alonzo Menifield of the United States, Song confessed he felt the heat as he walked into the arena accompanied by the theme song of the Chinese TV classic Journey to the West.

Inspired by the TV series' main character, Song is nicknamed the "Kung Fu Monkey" by his home fans. Song said afterward, he drew strength from the crowd's rousing reaction and the same music that played as prelude to his UFC debut in Shanghai in 2017.

After exchanging punches with the Brazilian veteran and fending off his opponent's takedown attempts, Song capitalized on an opening early in the second round by locking up a tight guillotine choke that forced Figueiredo to tap out at the 4:42 mark, securing Song the biggest win of his career.

"I did feel the pressure. I couldn't help but imagine seeing the headline of 'Total Loss for China' the next morning, so I told myself to do my best and focus on my fight," Song said during his post-fight news conference.

"I knew I have what it takes to win the bout and I'd prepared the best I could. So I just focused on executing my techniques. The opportunity (for a choke) came and I took it. The result just took care of itself," said the 28-year-old Heilongjiang native, who's been training at the Team Alpha Male club in Sacramento, California for years.

Asked whom he expects to fight in his next bout, Song shrugged off the hyped rivalry between him and the rest of the division, saying he is just focused on perfecting his own craft to be ready for whoever the UFC picks for him down the line.

"I don't care to be honest. My goal will be building my fight toward a shot at the division crown," said Song.

Song's victory capped off a three-day fighting series in Macao, where the UFC kicked off the Season 5 of its talent-selection tournament, the Road To UFC, on Thursday and Friday, before the blockbuster Fight Night main dish.

It's the second time in three years that Macao has hosted the world's premier MMA showpiece since the 2024 edition. In between the two events in Macao, the UFC also hosted a Fight Night and semifinal rounds of the RTU tournament in Shanghai last summer.

With over 12,600 spectators drawn to Saturday's main event, the impressive turnout at the Galaxy Arena, following the sought-after Shanghai event in August, has served up a strong testament to MMA's growing appeal to the Chinese market.

"Our commitment to this region and Greater China as a whole is reflected in the fact that we do more and more these events," Kevin Chang, UFC's senior vice-president and head of Asia, said of the organization's hosting of live events in China on a consistent basis.

"That's pretty important for what we're trying to do here to grow the fanbase and we've shown that we are committed to it and we are consistent. We expect more and more of these types of events to come."

Although not ready yet to be announced, Chang hinted in Macao that a return to Shanghai this year, quite possibly in late summer again, is being seriously discussed by the UFC and its Chinese partners.

"China is very, very important (for the UFC), just the scale of the country and the number of fans, and how passionate they are, and all of those things contribute to that," said Chang.