UFC: ‘Kung Fu Monkey’ returns as China’s Song Yadong sets sights on top five
- Chinese bantamweight joins blockbuster UFC 259 card on March 6, set to face American Kyler Phillips
- ‘He‘s got all the skills,’ says Song – ‘I’ll hopefully finish him when we are standing’
Song Yadong had his return date confirmed this week and while the Chinese bantamweight is now focused on the clash against Kyler Phillips – set for UFC 259 on March 6 – he still believes he is 12 months away from showing the world his true potential.
“I’ve been upgrading my grappling skills over this past 12 months, as I know this is an area that needs work,” the 23-year-old told SCMP MMA. “I still need one more year to keep sharpening my skills to bring myself to the top five. What also I need to do is to learn to be more patient when I fight.”
The UFC 259 card has been pencilled in for the Apex facility in Las Vegas, and is set to feature the light heavyweight title blockbuster between Polish champion Jan Błachowicz (27-8) and the Nigerian-Kiwi challenger and middleweight champ Israel Adesanya (20-0).
That the card also features Russia’s current bantamweight champ Petr Yan (15-1) against the American No 1 contender Aljamain Sterling (19-3) adds a little more spice to the night, for Song in particular as the rising star can get a close-up look at where (and against whom) his future may well lay.
Song says he will be relishing the opportunity to be there, among all the hype of a card that also features Brazilian “champ-champ” Amanda Nunes (20-4) defending her featherweight crown against Australia’s Megan Anderson (11-4).