UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen Vs Song + Weekly MMA Report
There was no Fight of the Award at the UFC 279 PPV event, but four Performance of the Night nods were well deserved. Four fighters earned an extra 50k!
Let’s start with the main event of the evening, where Nate Diaz choked out Tony Ferguson via guillotine choke. Also, we witnessed a super-entertaining up-kick to the liver KO in the match between Irene Aldana and Macy Chiasson. The Mexican cat lover unloaded a fabulous strike off the bottom which led to a bout stoppage. This is the first-ever body up-kick KO in the history of UFC!
#UFC279 Nate Diaz w/ submission win! pic.twitter.com/jp6YvmGaZm
— PREZDENT.eth (@CryptoLifeJack) September 11, 2022
What an INSANE FINISH!! Upkick Heel Kick to the Liver & now Irene Aldana is our WINNER!!#UFC #UFC279 #MMATwitter
pic.twitter.com/ZvgnNw0cnM— Totallyblitzed (@Totally_Blitzed) September 11, 2022
The two other Performance of the Night awards went in the hands of Jailton Almeida, who finished Anton Turkalj in the first; and Johnny Walker, who surprisingly choked out the Moldovan Combat Sambo fighter Ion Cutelaba.
Must. Watch. Submission!!!
Jailton Almeida had his way getting under Anton Turkalj's chin with the RNC for the tap!#UFC279 https://t.co/yZTbBwOkHz
— Consensus Score (@ConsensusScore) September 11, 2022
Johnny Walker RNCs Ion Cutelaba at UFC 279 pic.twitter.com/zhM2H7CVKJ
— Granby Roll (@ChillemDa4) September 12, 2022
The promotion stays in Las Vegas but returns to the UFC APEX center, where the outstanding bantamweight clash between Song Yadong and Cory Sandhagen is going to headline the event.
Image source: @UFCBrasil Twitter
Cory Sandhagen is one of the most technical guys in the division, known for brutal cardio and superb angle changing. It is so hard to catch him with a clean shot as he constantly moves laterally and looks for a flying knee or a punch counter.
On the other hand, Yadong is also a cardio machine, but he likes to throw flurries of punches. It could work against fighters with bad counters, but Cory Sandhagen is one of a kind when it comes to the defensive part of the game.
Prediction: Sandhagen to win (-190)
We’ll witness another banger in the co-main event of the evening, cause the powerful puncher Chidi Njokuani squares off against very tough Gregory Rodrigues. This could be “The Battle of Bodies”, as both of these guys are spending hours in the gym. Just look at their physiques, everything’s clear as day!
Njokuani’s right hand is so powerful, and Rodrigues already suffered a right straight knockout loss to Jordan Williams at Dana White Contender Series in the past, so this could be a big danger for him, plus Chidi has a reach advantage. Yet, Rodrigues is better on the ground, plus his counters improved a lot. One way or another, somebody’s going down.
Prediction: the fight will not go the distance
Main Card (ESPN+, UFC On Fight Pass, 7 PM ET, midnight UK time)
Cory Sandhagen (14-4-0) vs Yadong Song (19-6-1)
Chidi Njokuani (22-7-0) vs. Gregory Rodrigues (12-4-0)
Andre Fili (21-9-0) vs. Bill Algeo (16-6-0)
Alen Amedovski (8-3-0) vs. Joseph Pyfer (9-2-0)
Tanner Boser (20-8-1) vs. Rodrigo Nascimento (8-1-0)
Preliminary Card (ESPN+, UFC On Fight Pass, 4 PM ET, 9 PM UK time)
Anthony Hernandez (9-2-0) vs. Marc-André Barriault (14-5-0)
Damon Jackson (21-4-1) vs. Pat Sabatini (17-3-0)
Trevin Giles (14-4-0) vs. Louis Cosce (7-1-0)
Aspen Ladd (9-3-0) vs. Sara McMann (13-6-0)
Loma Lookboonmee (6-3-0) vs. Denise Gomes (6-1-0)
Trey Ogden (15-5-0) vs. Daniel Zellhuber (12-0-0)
Mariya Agapova (10-3-0) vs. Gillian Robertson (10-7-0)
Tony Gravely (23-7-0) vs. Javid Basharat (12-0-0)
Nikolas Motta (12-4-0) vs. Cameron VanCamp (15-6-1)
Here are my predictions for the upcoming card:
Let’s have fun on Saturday ladies and gentlemen, I see a lot of stoppages and high-level bouts coming up!
