UFC Fight Night 223 post-event facts: Song Yadong climbs KO list at 135 pounds
The UFC closed its April schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 223 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
The card, which was thin on paper, saw Song Yadong (20-7-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) shine in the main event when he outworked and eventually finished Ricky Simon (20-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) with a fifth-round TKO in their bantamweight showdown.
For more on the numbers to come out of the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 223.
Event stats
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The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payout for the event totaled $144,500.
Debuting fighters went 4-1 at the event.
Yadong, Caio Borralho, Rodolfo Vieira and Marcus McGhee earned $50,000 UFC Fight Night 223 fight-night bonuses.
The UFC sold VIP tickets to fans for UFC Fight Night 223, but the promotion did not make public the total number of tickets sold or the gate.
Betting favorites went 5-6 on the card.
Betting favorites fell to 7-7 in UFC headliners this year.
Total fight time for the 11-bout card was 2:01:22.
Song Yadong def. Ricky Simon
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (R-L) Song Yadong of China punches Ricky Simon in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Yadong improved to 7-2-1 since he dropped to the UFC bantamweight division.
Yadong has earned six of his nine UFC victories by stoppage.
Yadong’s five knockout victories in UFC bantamweight competition are tied for fourth-most in divisional history behind T.J. Dillashaw (seven), Marlon Vera (six) and Rob Font (six).
Simon has suffered three of his four career losses by stoppage.
Simon has landed 39 takedowns in UFC bantamweight competition, the second most in divisional history behind Merab Dvalishvili (61).
Caio Borralho vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (R-L) Caio Borralho of Brazil punches Michal Oleksiejczuk of Poland in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Borralho’s (14-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) four-fight UFC winning streak at middleweight is tied for the second-longest streak in the division behind Dricus Du Plessis (five).
Michal Oleksiejczuk (18-6 MMA, 6-4 UFC) fell to 2-1 since he dropped to the UFC middleweight division in August 2022.
Oleksiejczuk has suffered five of his six career losses by stoppage.
Oleksiejczuk has suffered all three of his UFC stoppage losses by submission.
Rodolfo Vieira def. Cody Brundage
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (R-L) Rodolfo Vieira of Brazil shoots for a takedown against Cody Brundage in a middleweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Vieira (9-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) has earned all nine of his career victories by stoppage.
Vieira has earned all four of his UFC victories by submission.
Cody Brundage (8-4 MMA, 2-3 UFC) has suffered three of his four career losses by stoppage.
Brundage suffered the first submission loss of his career.
Fernando Padilla def. Julian Erosa
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (L-R) Fernando Padilla of Mexico kicks Julian Erosa in a featherweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Fernando Padilla (15-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has earned 13 of his 15 career victories by stoppage.
Julian Erosa (27-11 MMA, 6-7 UFC) fell to 5-3 since he returned to the UFC for a third stint in June 2020.
Erosa has suffered six of his seven UFC losses by knockout.
Erosa has suffered all seven of his career stoppage losses by knockout.
Marcos Rogerio de Lima def. Waldo Cortes-Acosta
Marcos Rogerio de Lima (21-8-1 MMA, 10-6 UFC) improved to 7-3 in the UFC when competing at heavyweight.
Waldo Cortes-Acosta (9-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) had his nine fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.
Trey Waters def. Josh Quinlan
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (L-R) Josh Quinlan punches Trey Waters in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Josh Quinlan (6-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) had his seven-fight unbeaten streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.
Martin Buday def. Jake Collier
Martin Buday’s (12-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) three-fight UFC winning streak at heavyweight is tied with Serghei Spivac for the second-longest active streak in the division behind Sergei Pavlovich (six).
Buday has earned all three of his UFC victories by decision.
Jake Collier’s (13-8 MMA, 5-8 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since January 2022.
Collier fell to 2-5 since he moved up to the UFC heavyweight division in July 2020.
Cody Durden def. Charles Johnson
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (L-R) Cody Durden punches Charles Johnson in a flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Cody Durden’s (15-4-1 MMA, 4-2-1 UFC) three-fight UFC winning streak at flyweight is tied for the second-longest active streak in the division behind Muhammad Mokaev (four).
Durden has earned three of his four UFC victories by decision.
Charles Johnson (13-5 MMA, 2-3 UFC) has suffered all five of his career losses by decision.
Irina Alekseeva def. Stephanie Egger
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (R-L) Irina Alekseeva of Kazakstan punches Stephanie Egger of Switzerland in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Irina Alekseeva (5-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) earned the fourth kneebar in finish in women’s UFC history. Mackenzie Dern, Mayra Bueno Silva and Ariane Lipski also accomplished the feat.
Stephanie Egger (8-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) has suffered both of her career stoppage losses by submission.
Marcus McGhee def. Journey Newson
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (L-R) Journey Newson kicks Marcus McGhee in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
McGhee (7-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) was successful in his UFC debut on just three days’ notice.
McGhee has earned all seven of his career victories by stoppage.
McGhee earned the first submission victory of his career.
Journey Newson (10-4 MMA, 1-4 UFC) has suffered three of his five career losses by stoppage.
Newson suffered the first submission loss of his career.
Jamey-Lyn Horth def. Hailey Cowan
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 29: (R-L) Jamey-Lyn Horth of Canada punches Hailey Cowan in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Jamey-Lyn Horth (6-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) earned the first decision victory of her career.
Hailey Cowan (7-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) suffered the first decision loss of her career.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 223.
UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.
