Song Yadong delivered a show-stopping performance earlier this morning (Sat., Aug. 29, 2026) at UFC Shanghai LIVE on Paramount+ from inside the Shanghai Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai, China, as the bantamweight contender stunned Umar Nurmagomedov with a sensational second-round knockout. In co-main event action, rising women’s strawweight contender Denise Gomes put a brutal stop to former title challenger Yan Xiaonan with a first-round elbow knockout (watch HERE)
In addition to the bantamweight
headliner, UFC’s return to Shanghai produced a laundry list of finishes and memorable Octagon debuts. Check out some of the action below and let us know which performances stood out the most:
- Contender Series standout Bilal Hasan looked incredible in his UFC debut with a nasty one-punch stoppage over flyweight prospect Nilson Rojas
- Women’s strawweight veteran Julia Polastri shocked the Chinese crowd with a blistering head kick knockout finish over former ONE champion Jingnan Xiong
- Former kickboxing sensation Liu Ce delivered the goods in his anticipated UFC debut with a violent faceplant knockout over light heavyweight bruiser Levi Rodrigues Jr. (watch HERE)
- Bantamweight newcomer Hector Santiago played spoiler with an upset knockout stoppage over touted prospect Lawrence Lui
- Former RIZIN champion Kai Asakura laid waste to bantamweight veteran Aoriqileng with a brutal second-round head kick TKO (see it HERE)
- Italian prospect Francesco Nuzzi lived up to his hype after stopping Xiao Long with a 60-second knockout finish
- Andre Lima returned to the UFC bantamweight win column with a slick guillotine choke over young finisher Namsrai Batbayar
- Flyweight sensation Rei Tsuruya pushed his UFC record to 6-1 (including Road to UFC bouts) with a first-round submission over Kevin Borjas
Now that the Octagon action has come to a close, let’s take a closer look at the official UFC Shanghai post-fight bonus winners. Remember, each winner gets an extra $100,000, while every fighter leftover who earned a finish gets $25,000.
Fight of the Night: Liu Ce vs. Levi Rodrigues Jr.
Performance of the Night: Song Yadong
Performance of the Night: Bilal Hasan
$25K Winners: Hector Santiago, Francesco Nuzzi, Rei Tsuruya, Kai Asakura, and Denise Gomes
For complete UFC Shanghai results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.
