UFC Shanghai: Blockbuster main event set to excite fans in UFC's first event in China since 2019

UFC Shanghai is set for December 9, 2023, as the UFC makes their first trip to China since 2019 when Zhang Weili defeated Jessica Andrade via first-round TKO to capture the women's strawweight title, becoming the first Chinese champion in promotional history. The return to China now has a main event as No.7-ranked bantamweight Song Yadong will face No.14-ranked bantamweight, Chris Gutierrez, according to Spinning Backfist, who tweeted:

"MAIN EVENT FOR SHANGHAI IS HERE Song Yadong vs Chris Gutierrez December 9 | Shanghai China | 135 lbs 1st source @MagicM_MMABets"

Check out Spinning Backfist's tweet reporting the UFC Shanghai main event below:

Yadong has a record of 20 wins, seven losses, one draw, and one no-contest since making his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2013. He has nine victories via knockout, three victories via submission, and eight victories via decision. While he has never been submitted, 'Kung Fu Kid' has been knocked out twice, lost via decision four times, and lost via disqualification once. He has nine wins, two losses, and one draw since making his promotional debut in 2017.

Gutierrez has a professional mixed martial arts record of 20 wins, five losses and two draws since making his debut in 2013. He has nine knockout victories, one submission victory, and ten decision victories. While he has never been knocked out, 'El Guapo' has been submitted once and lost via decision four times. He has eight wins, two losses, and one draw since making his promotional debut in 2018.

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Song Yadong appeared set to face Petr Yan at UFC Shanghai before withdrawal

There had been reports that Song Yadong would face former bantamweight champion Petr Yan in the main event of UFC Shanghai. The No.5-ranked bantamweight was forced to withdraw in October, however, which Yadong revealed last month. Chris Presnell of MMA Ecosystem shared the news, tweeting:

"As far as the main event on December 9th goes, there was a plan to have Song vs. Yan in that spot (hence my use of the word "targeted"), but Petr Yan is no longer in that plan. The search continues for an opponent for Song Yadong."

Presnell shared a screenshot from Yadong's post on Douyin, a TikTok-type app in China, which shared texts from his manager, adding:

"On Douyin, Song Yadong confirmed that Petr Yan was the plan for December 9th, and revealed a text from his manager claiming that Yan is injured."

Check out Chris Presnell's tweets on the bout falling through below:

While that news was reported nearly a month ago, Yadong now has an opponent for his return to the octagon. UFC Shanghai will mark his third consecutive main event and his first time-fighting in his home country since 2018.