Yadong Song's team predicted exact uppercut KO of Umar Nurmagomedov

Yadong Song's dominant second-round knockout of Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC Shanghai on August 29 was no accident—his coaching team had specifically planned the finishing uppercut during training camp. The Chinese bantamweight's upset victory has thrust him into title contention and exposed meticulous preparation by his corner.

Song revealed that his boxing coach, Rudy Hernandez, had identified Nurmagomedov's vulnerability to the uppercut as a counter to his takedown entries. The team anticipated that the Dagestani would shoot with his head dipping toward the left side and repeatedly drilled the counter throughout camp. "My boxing coach, Rudy Hernandez, he already told me, 'You gonna get the knockout tonight with uppercut,'" Song said in a post-fight interview. "We've been working on that. We know he gonna shoot from the left side and we find the uppercut."

With the biggest win of his career secured, Song is displaying confidence about his prospects against the bantamweight elite. He claimed he could finish current champion Petr Yan and former champion Sean O'Malley in rematches—both fighters have previously defeated Song by decision. He also expressed belief he could finish Merab Dvalishvili. "I feel like I can finish everyone," Song stated. "I can finish Petr. I can finish Merab. Even Sean's fight is very close. If a rematch, I can finish him too."