Song Yadong scored the finish of his career at UFC Shanghai, knocking out Umar Nurmagomedov in the main event with an uppercut his own team had drilled specifically for this fight. Song called it the best moment of his life afterward, and the win instantly puts him back into bantamweight title contention. Sean O'Malley even weighed in with a reaction video, using the finish as a reminder of just how unsettled the 135 pound picture remains right now.
Sources (13)
We summarise the day's news in our own words. Full credit to the outlets below for the original reporting, click through to read their work.
- Kai Asakura finds new life in UFC following rocky flyweight start (Sherdog)
- Justin Gaethje rules out UFC return in 2026 (The Mac Life)
- Usman Nurmagomedov fires back over Yadong Song incident at UFC Shanghai (Sherdog)
- Top 15 UFC star believes he will be Usman Nurmagomedov’s first opponent in the octagon (Bloody Elbow)
- Zabit Magomedsharipov returns after 7 years, beats UFC featherweight (Sherdog)
- Ex-UFC fighter Sedriques Dumas takes down costumed fan in arena brawl (Sherdog)
- Yuki Yoza And Nabil Anane Set For Bantamweight Kickboxing Collision At ONE SAMURAI 4 (ONE Championship)
- Dan Hooker doubts Ilia Topuria would risk Usman Nurmagomedov fight (Sherdog)
- Zabit Magomedsharipov calls Yadong Song’s Umar Nurmagomedov KO a ‘lucky punch’ (Sherdog)
- Song Yadong calls knocking out Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC Shanghai ‘the best moment of my life’ (MMA Fighting)
- Yadong Song's team predicted exact uppercut KO of Umar Nurmagomedov (Sherdog)
- Sean O’Malley Reacts To Song Yadong’s UFC Shanghai KO With Title-Race Reminder (MiddleEasy)
- Usman Nurmagomedov's former rival returns for PFL Chicago (Sherdog)
Split from that day's roundup, so the sources listed are the full set behind the whole edition rather than this story alone.
This story ran in the August 31, 2026 edition of the daily show.