The UFC returned to Singapore for UFC Fight Night 132 starring Donald Cerrone and Leon Edwards in the main event. The co-main event featured a light heavyweight fight between Ovince Saint Preux and Tyson Pedro.
Leon Edwards proved himself to be a threat at welterweight with a unanimous decision victory over the always game “Cowboy”. Cerrone was poised to become the UFC’s all-time leader in wins. Unfortunately, he suffered a loss, but made it clear in his post-fight interview that “this old dog still got a lot of fights left”. As for Edwards, he has stated intent to face a top ten opponent next time out, preferably Jorge Masvidal.
The co-main event also provided a very important matchup, this one at light heavyweight. Former interim title challenger Ovince Saint Preux took on Tyson Pedro in an important bout for both competitors.
UFC Fight Night 132 Standout Performances
Also on the main card, we saw a significant fight in the women’s flyweight division in the battle of the Jessicas. Jessica-Rose Clark took on UFC veteran, Jessica Eye. Jessica Eye was able to perform well enough to earn herself a unanimous decision victory.
Plus we saw the return of Chinese sensation, Li Jingliang as he took on Japan’s Daichi Abe. That fight went the distance as “The Leech” dominated the fight on his way to a one-sided unanimous decision victory.
Let’s now take a look at the five performances from the UFC’s stop in Singapore. This is MMASucka‘s Standout Performances.
#1: Ovince Saint Preux
Ovince Saint Preux def. Tyson Pedro via Submission (Straight-Armbar) at 2:54 of Round 1
SINGAPORE – JUNE 23: (R-L) Ovince Saint Preux secures an armbar submission against Tyson Pedro of Australia in their light heavyweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 23, 2018, in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Ovince Saint Preux had himself a great 2017, going 3-1 and winning three straight to close out the year. He came into 2018 looking to fight his way to a title shot until he met Sweden‘s Ilir Latifi at UFC on Fox 28. That night ended quickly for OSP as Latifi stunned him in the first before locking up a standing guillotine. OSP was forced to tap, but the ref didn’t see the tap and OSP fell unconscious, ending his impressive three-fight win streak. Coming into a fight against a young, talented fighter like Tyson Pedro, OSP needed a win to prove he is among the top fighters at 205.
Australia’s Pedro started his career 6-0, winning his first two UFC fights, finishing Khalil Rountree Jr. and Paul Craig. Coming off those wins, he earned a huge step up in competition as he took on Ilir Latifi at UFC 215. He was rushed into that fight as Latifi dominated and won by unanimous decision. After suffering the first loss of his career, he took a much smaller name at UFC 221 when he took on Saparbek Safarov. He won the fight quickly as he took Safarov down and locked in a kimura that forced Safarov to tap. The win earned him another shot at top ten competition as he got the fight against OSP. The win would be the biggest of the young fighter’s career.
Round One
The fight started as the two fighters touched gloves, Saint Preux landed a body kick that Pedro followed up on with his own. Pedro continued to use his kicks as he landed a good head kick a bit later. The two continued to circle around the octagon as they were both feeling each other out. Pedro landed another body kick and followed it up with a nice right hand. A few seconds later, Pedro landed another perfect question mark kick that he once again followed up with a right hand. The punch landed perfectly and dropped Saint Preux, forcing Pedro to jump on him and look for the finish.
Pedro wobbles OSP but he REFUSES to quit! #UFCSingapore pic.twitter.com/4j7Sgv53HE
— UFC (@ufc) June 23, 2018
Saint Preux seemed to recover quickly as he looked for a double leg takedown, but Pedro locked up a standing guillotine. A little deja vu for Saint Preux as he found himself stuck in a tight standing guillotine after getting rocked. Pedro continued to squeeze but Saint Preux was able to pop his head out after a couple seconds.
They were in the clinch as Pedro made some space between them and landed a good elbow. As they continued to battle for position in the clinch, Pedro landed another elbow. Pedro began to look for the trip takedown, but Saint Preux continued to keep his balance. Pedro continued looking for the takedown and almost got it but Saint Preux reversed it and ended up on top. But the two didn’t stay grounded for long as they stood up in the clinch again.
Saint Preux began pursuing a standing guillotine of his own before letting it go as Pedro continued looking for the takedown. Pedro got him down o the ground but Saint Preux immediately got back to his feet again.
Pedro finally started looking for a body lock takedown as he tried forcing OSP to the mat, but OSP reversed it once again and ended up on top. Saint Preux got to side control and started landing hard hammer fists before he began attacking an arm. He looked as if he were going for a kimura lock but ended up locking in a straight armbar that forced Pedro to tap quickly. This was the win that OSP needed to prove he’s still a threat at light heavyweight and he made the most of it.
https://twitter.com/Maldobabo/status/1010514233459724288
#2: Petr Yan
Petr Yan def. Teruto Ishihara via TKO (Punches) at 3:28 of Round 1
SINGAPORE – JUNE 23: Petr Yan of Russia celebrates after his knockout victory over Teruto Ishihara of Japan in their bantamweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 23, 2018, in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
MMASucka‘s Fighter of Interest, Petr Yan was making his UFC debut in this fight as he went 8-1 outside of the octagon. Riding a three-fight winning streak, his most recent win came at ACB 71 as he took on Matheus Mattos. He won the fight in the third round by TKO to defend his ACB bantamweight title for the first time. He came into the UFC with high hopes as he was making his debut against Teruto Ishihara.
Ishihara came into the fight with seven UFC fights to his name, going 3-3-1 in those seven. His most recent fight came against Jose Alberto Quinonez at UFC 221. He returned to bantamweight for that fight, fighting at 135 for the first time since 2014. He lost that fight by unanimous decision, falling to 2-3 in his last five.
Round One
A touch of gloves kicked off this fight with Ishihara landing a body kick quickly after. Yan was pressing forward, forcing Ishihara to have his back against the cage. Ishihara threw a hard leg kick that missed and caused him to stumble, but he maintained his balance. Ishihara threw another body kick that missed but he followed it up with a good leg kick. As they continued to circle around the octagon, Ishihara threw a head kick that was mostly blocked by Yan.
Yan continued to cut off the octagon but wasn’t throwing anything as Ishihara was throwing more strikes with his back against the cage. Yan finally threw his first strikes as he threw a left hook that missed and a follow up right hand to the body that landed. Ishihara continued utilizing his kicks as he threw another leg kick followed up by a jab and another body kick. After that combo, Ishihara changed levels and landed a good double leg takedown. Yan got up immediately and looked to land a left hook as Ishihara was getting back to his feet.
Yan began walking forward again, forcing Ishihara to back up towards the cage. Ishihara continued attacking the lead leg of Yan as Yan continued to press forward. Yan answered with a good left-right hook combo that landed. Ishihara landed another leg kick and then looked for another takedown but Yan noticed it and stuffed it easily. Yan backed him up to the fence and landed a couple good left hooks. Ishihara answered by throwing a couple jabs and a quick front kick to the body. Yan moved in and fainted a right hand that he followed up with a perfect left hook. He then connected with a body kick as he moved in again and landed a few good punches to the chin of Ishihara.
He then moved back and landed a perfect left hand that dropped Ishihara. Ishihara was scrambling frantically, looking for a way to get back to his feet as Yan was trying to finish the fight. He eventually got back to his feet and the two were locked up in the clinch. Ishihara landed a knee as they broke apart and Yan landed a spinning back fist that stunned Ishihara. Yan noticed and closed in, where he landed a right hand and dropped Ishihara once again. He followed up with ground and pound until the ref rushed in to stop the fight. Yan had won his UFC debut and fans are excited to see what he can do it the talent-rich bantamweight division.
What a debut!! No Mercy from @PetrYanUFC at #UFCSingapore! pic.twitter.com/j0LHphDQ8F
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) June 23, 2018
#3: Song Yadong
Song Yadong def. Felipe Arantes via KO (Elbow and Punches) at 4:59 of Round 2
SINGAPORE – JUNE 23: Song Yadong of China celebrates after his knockout victory over Felipe Arantes of Brazil in their bantamweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 23, 2018, in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Twenty-year-old Song Yadong came into this fight with a record of 11-3 with two no contests. His most recent outing was his UFC debut that took place at UFC Fight Night 122 in November. That night he took on Bharat Khandare and he finished the fight in the first round, submitting Khandare with a guillotine choke. Coming into this fight, he was facing a UFC veteran in Brazilian Felipe Arantes.
Arantes has been apart of the UFC since making his UFC debut at UFC 134 in 2011 when he took on Iuri Alcantara. As a member of the UFC, he’s gone 5-6 with one no contest in 12 fights. Going into his fight against Song, he had lost his last two. His most recent loss came at UFC Fight Night 118 when he took on another member of Team Alpha Male, Josh Emmett. He lost that fight by a lopsided unanimous decision after being knocked down multiple times in the first round.
Round One
The fight started with a touch of gloves and Song landing a good jab. Song landed a good leg kick and followed up with a good left-right hook combo. He used the left-right combo a few times again as he continued dancing around the octagon. He continued moving forward and landing good hooks.
Arantes hasn’t done much as Song continues throwing the left-right combo. Song quickly spins around and lands a spinning wheel kick, but Arantes takes it. Arantes threw a body kick, but Song throws a punch that causes Arantes to fall to the mat.
Song gets on top of Arantes and begins to land some good ground and pound. After a few seconds, Song ends up in Arantes’ guard. He continues to throw some elbows and lands good punches. Arantes was doing a good job of holding Song close to him, but Song continued to create enough space to land a few elbows. The round ended just as Song got back to his feet. The round seemed like a clear victory for Song as he threw many more strikes and controlled him on the bottom for the last couple minutes of the round.
Round Two
Round two starts as Song quickly rushed to the center of the octagon and landed a very quick head kick. He followed up with a spinning kick to the body but Arantes threw a knee that interfered and knocked Song off balance. Arantes then rushed in and tried to land some good shots, but Song managed to get out of the way. Song closed in and landed a short right hand and moved out just in time to avoid an Arantes head kick.
Thirty seconds into the round, Arantes changed levels for a takedown, but Song reversed it and ended up on top against the fence. He postured up and rained down elbows as Arantes covered up. He continued to stay busy landing multiple shots to the left side of Arantes’ body. Arantes tried to scramble and gave up his back. He rolled over again and Song ended up in side control as he began looking to pass to full mount. Arantes gave his back up again and Song started to land hard knees to the side of Arantes’ body. Arantes rolled over again and Song began to attack an arm triangle and has it locked up, but Arantes defended well and Song gave it up.
With one minute left in the round, Arantes finally got back to his feet. He landed some good punches and looked to take Song down but fails as the two found themselves locked up in the clinch. The ten-second clapper sounds and Song lands a knee and with almost four seconds left, Song lands a perfect elbow that drops Arantes. He rained down ground and pound until the ref is forced to step in.
Last 10 seconds!!
Song Yadong with a HUGE elbow from the clinch at #UFCSingapore!! pic.twitter.com/VWLwjoLp6U
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) June 23, 2018
#4: Song Kenan
Song Kenan def. Hector Aldana via TKO (Punches) at 4:45 of Round 2
SINGAPORE – JUNE 23: Song Kenan of China celebrates after his knockout victory over Hector Aldana of Mexico in their welterweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 23, 2018, in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Older brother of previously mentioned Song Yadong, Song Kenan also stepped into the octagon the other night. Song came into the fight with the same record as his younger brother, minus the two no contests, as 11-3. He made his UFC debut on the same night as Yadong, at UFC Fight Night 122. That night he faced Bobby Nash, who he finished in just 15 seconds by knockout. He looked to continue his finishing ways going into his fight against UFC newcomer, Hector Aldana.
Hector Aldana was making his UFC debut after going 4-0 outside of the promotion. Aldana hadn’t fought in nearly five years with the exception of his appearance on The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America Season 2 in 2015. He went on to win his first fight in that competition over Alvaro Herrera but went on to lose in the semi-finals against Enrique Marin. His most recent professional outing came in 2013 under Fights Factory when he took on Ivest Samayoa. He won that fight in the third round by TKO for his fourth straight victory.
Round One
The fight started as Aldana refused to touch gloves. Song landed a punch that seemed to have already cut Aldana. Aldana rushed in and landed a good body kick. Aldana continued throwing, landing good punches as Song utilized a lot of kicks. Song threw a spinning hook kick that brushed off the forehead of Aldana. Aldana landed a big leg kick that forced Song to spin around.
Song threw a body kick that Aldana caught and used to trip Song and take him down. They weren’t down for long as Song got himself up to his feet again. The two continued to circle around as Aldana landed a leg kick and Song answered with a spinning kick to the body that missed. Song threw another body kick and Aldana was able to catch it again and trip him for his second takedown, but Song got up quickly once again.
Aldana landed a few more good punches as the two continued to circle until the end of the round. It seemed to be a very close round, but Aldana seemed to do a lot more which should have won him the round.
Round Two
The second round started as the two touched gloves. Aldana continued using his leg kicks, connecting with a few at the beginning of the round. Song moved in and landed a hard body kick. He then backed up and threw a food head kick that landed. Song moved in again and used a push kick to the lead leg to propel himself into a spinning wheel kick. Aldana continued using his leg kicks as he was landing them to the lead leg of Song.
Song moved in and landed a jab that he followed up with a superman punch. After a little while, he uses the superman punch again then landed a left hook that knocked Aldana off balance. Ge followed up with more good punches as he backed Aldana up. With about fifty seconds left in the round, Song threw a front kick that landed low, causing a pause in the action.
Aldana took his time and the fight resumed with a touch of gloves. With about twenty seconds left in the fight Song connected with a beautiful right hand to the temple of Aldana. Aldana fell to the mat and immediately covered up as Song rained down punches before the stoppage.
What a right hand by The Assassin at #UFCSingapore!! pic.twitter.com/9zmKlFFIke
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) June 23, 2018
#5: Shane Young
Shane Young def. Rolando Dy via TKO (Elbow and Punches) at 4:40 of Round 2
SINGAPORE – JUNE 23: Shane Young of New Zealand celebrates after his TKO victory over Rolando Dy of Phillippines in their featherweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on June 23, 2018, in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
New Zealand‘s Shane Young was coming off his UFC debut coming into this fight. He debuted back at UFC 221, entering the UFC with a record of 11-3. That night he took on Alexander Volkanovski and lost the fight by unanimous decision after a hard fought fight. He looked to get his first UFC victory in this one, taking on Rolando Dy of the Philippines.
Rolando Dy came into this fight with three UFC fights to his name. In those three fights, he’s gone 1-2, losing his first two fights before winning his most recent outing. That win came at UFC Fight Night 122 when he took on Wuliji Buren. He won that fight by unanimous decision, snapping his two-fight losing streak. He came into this fight looking to win consecutive fights for the first time since 2016.
Round One
The fight started with Dy looking to touch gloves, but Young refused. Young began walking him down, landing some punches and leg kicks. As Dy found himself against the fence, he launched some combos that landed. Young changed levels, looking for a double leg, but Dy defended it. They found themselves in the clinch against the fence but broke apart quickly. As Young continued to press forward, Dy needed to get off the fence. Dy rushed forward, winging punches and connecting with a few before the two were back in the center. But Young continued to press forward again, backing Dy up to the fence.
As they circled around the octagon, Dy was finding some success with his combinations as Young landed a good body kick. Young closed the distance and landed a good straight right hand. He moved out of the pocket before moving in again and landing the same punch. Dy began moving forward again and threw a head kick, but Young ducked out of the way and moved forward. Young moved in and attempted to land a right hook, but Dy caught him and initiated the clinch. In the clinch, Dy landed a good elbow before the two broke apart.
Young was once again moving forward, cutting off the rest of the octagon. He moved in close until Dy’s back was on the fence and Young landed a perfect right hand that made Dy’s knees buckle. From there, Young unleashed punches that were connecting, but Dy seemed to have recovered quickly. He began throwing counter punches and connected with a hard counter left hand before connecting with another hard right hook. Young wasn’t giving up though. He ate the counter shots and continued pressing forward, swinging for the finish. With Dy having seemed to be fully recovered and finding success with strikes, Young shot in for a takedown and got it.
Young battled to get control on the ground, but Dy eventually got back to his feet. Once he got back to his feet, they were in the clinch once again where Young landed a few punches and another elbow before breaking apart. Dy tried to land some shots but just wasn’t finding any success as he threw a head kick that Young dodged. But Young kept on pursuing and finding success with his punches as he continued to land good shots. Dy closed in and grabbed Young where he landed a knee on the break. Young also landed a knee of his own, but Dy seemed to believe it was a low shot. He began walking away, complaining about the strike, but the ref let the fight continued as Young questioned why he stopped fighting as he was pushing forward.
After the short pause in the action, Young rushed in swinging. They were clinched again, where this time, Dy landed an elbow on the break. The round ended after Dy defended a takedown attempt from Young. The round was close as both fighters found a lot of success with their strikes at the beginning. But Young seemed to have won the round as he was landing the harder shots and also had a takedown.
Round Two
The round started and Young threw a couple jabs that didn’t land as Dy threw a one-two that connected. Dy threw another head kick and couldn’t connect once again as Young ducked out of the way. Young threw a leg kick and a couple punches before shooting in for another takedown. He successfully got Dy down to the mat, but Dy used the cage to get up immediately. But Young continued to look for the takedown as he began attacking the double leg. He tried to lift Dy off the mat, but Dy kept himself standing with terrific balance.
As they were in the clinch again, Young landed a nee and another elbow. Both fighters continued to find success in their striking, landing good combinations. Young kept landing hard shots and eventually opened up a cut near the left eye of Dy. Young pushed forward but Dy was connecting with good shots as blood dripped from the cut.
Both fighters were throwing before Young landed a good combination. Dy attempted to close the distance to land some shots but Young landed a perfect short elbow that rocked Dy. Young noticed he hurt him and began unloading punches as Dy slowly collapsed to the mat as the ref was forced to stop the fight.
With the KO! @ShaneYoungMMA 🇳🇿 stops Rolando Dy at #UFCSingapore! pic.twitter.com/j2cELj5OLI
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) June 23, 2018
Next Week
With another fun night of fights in the books, I’ve listed the five fighters that put on a Standout Performance. Now we take a look at what is next or the worldwide leader in combat sports:
Next week, the UFC will be taking a break once again, but don’t worry, when they return, it’s International Fight Week. Two consecutive days of fights will go down that week starting with The Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale. The finalists from The Ultimate Fighter: Undefeated put their undefeated record on the like to try to become the ultimate fighter. In the main event, we will see exciting new prospect and kickboxing veteran, Israel Adesanya take on Hawaii’s Brad Tavares.
Then, Saturday night, the biggest card of the year goes down. The super fight will be live from Las Vegas as the UFC’s heavyweight champion, Stipe Miocic takes on the UFC’s light heavyweight champion, Daniel Cormier. Plus, in the co-main event, the most anticipated featherweight title fight since Conor McGregor took on Jose Also at UFC 194 goes down. Hawaiian champion, Max Holloway looks to keep the blessed era alive as he takes on undefeated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, Brian Ortega. Many other very exciting will go down that night including Francis Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis and Gohkan Saki returns against Khalil Rountree Jr.
So join me in two weeks as I will provide ten standout performances in just two days as I look back on the events of International Fight Week.
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