UFC Vegas 72 free replay: Yadong Song stops Ricky Simón late in the 5th

The UFC Vegas 72 main event was capped off with the promotion’s #8 ranked 135-pounder, Yadong Song, stopping the #10 ranked, Ricky Simón, with strikes in the fifth round. Song scored a late knockdown with a left hook at the end of the third round, and then used the same weapon to drop Simón again in the fifth. It was the followup ground and pound that sealed the seal, and got Song back into the win column.

Check out out description of the UFC Vegas 72 main event:

Song took the center right away, with Simón showing him some respect from the outside. We were getting some measuring going on in the early stages of the opening round, but things started to pick up nicely. The fighters started to open up, wining heavy leather back and forth.

We got an explosive moment early in the second stanza when Song and Simón clashed heads, and Ricky got rocked as a result. Simón went to his wrestling and was able to recover, but he was forced to face Song in open space. The hands of Song were dialed in, and he was able to clip Simón with several smooth punches to the head and body. Simón did blast a takedown at the end of the round, and scored a bit of ground and pound with the little bit of time left.

We got an accidental cup check to Simón to start the third frame. After a break, the standup battle continued. Song wasn’t being as active he was in the previous round, which allowed Simón to punch his way back into the fight.

The striking war melted over into the fourth round. Song continued to work his boxing, and was able to stuff the takedown attempts of Simón. The jab of Simón was pumping out there, but he was struggling to build off of it. Meanwhile, Song was ripping with much more variety. Just before the bell, Song cracked Simón with a massive left that floored him. Song pounced on his downed opponent, but ran out of time before he could find a finish.

The final round saw Song go right back to work. He dropped Ricky with another left hook, and then followed his dazed foe to the floor yet again. This time, Song had tons of time to drop hammers and close the show! What a finish!

UFC Vegas 72 highlights

Eddie Mercado

Eddie Mercado is a writer and content creator for Bloody Elbow, and has covered combat sports since 2015. Eddie covers everything from betting odds and live events, to fighter interviews and co-hosting the 6th Round post-fight show and the 6th Round Retro. He retired at 1-0 in professional MMA, competed in one Muay Thai match in Thailand, and is currently a purple belt in Jiu-Jitsu under the great Diego Bispo.

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