UFC Fight Night 122 emanated today (Saturday, November 25, 2017) from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. The UFC Fight Pass show was headlined by a middleweight showdown between former title-holder and late replacement Michael Bisping and up-and-coming finisher Kelvin Gastelum. Gastelum took care of business in emphatic and devastating fashion, knocking Bisping senseless […]
UFC Fight Night 122 emanated today (Saturday, November 25, 2017) from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. The UFC Fight Pass show was headlined by a middleweight showdown between former title-holder and late replacement Michael Bisping and up-and-coming finisher Kelvin Gastelum.
Gastelum took care of business in emphatic and devastating fashion, knocking Bisping senseless with a left hook in the very first round. Gastelum was one of four men to pocket an extra $50,000 for their Performance of the Night efforts.
Co-headliner Li Jingliang also took home a bonus check for his first-round knockout of Zak Ottow in his home country. This time, it was a right hand through the guard that dropped the loser, and Jingliang swarmed with relentless ground and pound until the referee had seen enough. “The Leech” had the feel-good moment of the night as he ran into the crowd to kiss his wife and infant daughter, and he’ll go home $50k richer as well.
In the featured prelim and perhaps the most highly anticipated bout of the night, Zabit Magomedsharipov confirmed himself as more than a flashy kicker, but a bonafide blue-chip prospect. He ran a clinic on the tough and talented Sheymon Moraes, making his debut as the biggest underdog on the card. Magomedsharipov largely negated Moraes’ dangerous Muay Thai striking, taking him down at will and running a grappling clinic. Seemingly on a whim, the Dagestani finished Moraes with an anaconda choke in the third round. He, too, will have an extra $50,000 in his bank account come Monday morning.
Finally, 19-year-old Chinese featherweight prospect Song Yadong dominated Indian wrestler Bharat Kandare and finished him in the first round. Kandare never got in range to utilize his takedowns. Yadong pressured and landed heavy punches whenever his Indian counterpart threw. Yadong closed the show with a step-in right hand that floored his adversary, and when Kandare shot in for a desperate takedown, Yadong snatched a guillotine. The youngest fighter on the UFC roster will take home a nice payday with his $50,000 bonus check.
Keep it locked to LowKickMMA for all your UFC Shanghai post-fight news and notes.
Kelvin Gastelum put the middleweight division on notice with a first-round knockout of Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai, China.
The Count, who just lost to Georges St-Pierre at UFC 217, wasn’t able to cope with …
Kelvin Gastelum put the middleweight division on notice with a first-round knockout of Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai, China.
The Count, who just lost to Georges St-Pierre at UFC 217, wasn’t able to cope with Gastelum’s power. The two engaged in a back-and-forth striking battle until the 26-year-old unfurled a right hook-left hand combination that put Bisping out.
It’s a huge win for Gastelum, who has found success in both the middleweight and welterweight divisions. A first-round knockout over a man who held a UFC championship just weeks before their fight is his new signature win, and he’s eyeing Robert Whittaker next:
For Bisping, this sets up an interesting scenario, as he is another fight closer to retirement. He wants to call it a career after a fight in his native England in March. Bisping’s career has been up and down, but he’s been able to avoid back-to-back losses until this point:
Bisping, who has been one of the most reliable fighters for the UFC throughout his lengthy career, was a company man in taking a fight just weeks after losing his title. Now all that’s left is for him go out on his own terms.
Here’s a look at all the results from the card in Shanghai along with a closer look at the main card action.
UFC Fight Night 122 Results
Michael Bisping vs. Kelvin Gastelum: Gastelum def. Bisping by KO (punches) at 2:30 of Round 1
Li Jingliang vs. Zak Ottow: Li def. Ottow by TKO (punches) at 2:57 of Round 1
Alex Caceres vs. Wang Guan: Wang def. Caceres by split decision (28-29, 29-28 x2)
Alex Garcia vs. Muslim Salikhov: Garcia def. Salikhov by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:22 of Round 2
Zabit Magomedsharipov vs. Sheymon Moraes: Magomedsharipov def. Moraes by submission (anaconda choke) at 4:30 of Round 1
Bobby Nash vs. Kenan Song: Song def. Nash by TKO (punches) at 0:15 of Round 1
Kailin Curran vs. Xiaonan Yan: Yan def. Curran by unanimous decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)
Bharat Kandare vs. Yadong Song: Song def. Kandare by submission (guillotine choke) at 4:16 of Round 1
Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Chase Sherman: Abdurakhimov def. Sherman by KO (punch) at 1:24 of Round 1
Gina Mazany vs. Yanan Wu: Mazany def. Wu by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Wuliji Buren vs. Rolando Dy: Dy def. Wuliji by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Cyril Asker vs. Hu Yaozong: Asker def. Hu by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:33 of Round 2
Li Jingliang vs. Zak Ottow
China has a legit welterweight prospect in Li Jingliang. The 29-year-old smashed his way to a successful appearance in the co-main event, defeating Zak Ottow via first-round TKO thanks to his crisp boxing.
Ottow was happy to oblige Jingliang in a striking battle, throwing head kicks and combinations early, but none seemed to find home. Not so for Jingliang, who uncorked a left hook-right hand combination that floored Ottow and ended his night early.
The win was just the latest display of Jingliang’s power. As Michael Carroll of FightMetric noted, few people have demonstrated this kind of power in the 170-pound division of late:
This was a matchup the hometown fighter was supposed to look good in. Still, it might be time for Jianglang to get a top-15 opponent.
Whoever that is should be prepared for power.
Wang Guan vs. Alex Caceres
Those who woke up to watch this card at 7 a.m. ET were treated to a good one. The two featherweights engaged in a back-and-forth brawl that resulted in a split-decision win for Guan.
Caceres seemed to be in control early. Guan struggled to time up Caceres’ unorthodox timing and distance management, but when Guan landed his first big strike, it was almost the end.
After surviving the round, Caceres clawed his way back into the fight to make the second round competitive. The third round saw Caceres make a comeback, winning it with some slick counters but never putting Guan in any serious trouble.
It was an impressive win for Guan as Caceres is a seasoned UFC veteran. In all, he showcased his power with three knockdowns and became a name to watch in the featherweight division.
Alex Garcia vs. Muslim Salikhov
Alex Garcia kicked off the main card by going into hostile territory to pick up a submission win over UFC debutant Muslim Salikhov.
Salikhov came into the bout with nine of his 13 professional fights taking place in China and an impressive win over Melvin Guillard in his last bout. However, Garcia gave him a rough welcome to the UFC.
Garcia took the first round with his grappling and surprisingly won some of the striking exchanges with the Kung Fu fighter. It was also a harbinger for what would go down in the second round.
With more confidence, Garcia was able to secure his third takedown of the fight. From there, he worked himself into position to lock in the rear-naked choke, and the card was officially kicked off with an upset.
UFC Fight Night 122 emanated this morning (Saturday, November 25, 2017) from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. The show was headlined by short-notice replacement and recent champion Michael Bisping stepping in to take on the dangerous Kelvin Gastelum. The former “Ultimate Fighter” winner took care of business like many expected, and he did […]
UFC Fight Night 122 emanated this morning (Saturday, November 25, 2017) from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China. The show was headlined by short-notice replacement and recent champion Michael Bisping stepping in to take on the dangerous Kelvin Gastelum. The former “Ultimate Fighter” winner took care of business like many expected, and he did so in brutal fashion, knocking Bisping out with a flush left hook in the first round.
The co-headliner featured the most successful Chinese MMA fighter ever, Li Jingliang, taking on the well-rounded Zak Ottow. “The Leech” also ended his fight emphatically in the first round, dropping Ottow with a right hand and pouncing for the finish.
I have real sour taste in my mouth after that one. It's really bad that Bisping was allowed to fight so soon after the GSP fight. We need to be better than that as a sport.
Figured I’d wake up right before Bisping Gastelum started and first tweet I see says fight’s over. Okay then, back to bed. #UFCXangaipic.twitter.com/n7l31CVDRr
As a martial artist of Chinese heritage who has visited China multiple times, I can tell you that that moment was huge. Hard for anyone not to feel good for Jingliang there. #UFCShanghai
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping made an extremely short turnaround to face rising prospect Kelvin Gastelum in the main event of today’s (Sat., November 25, 2017) UFC Fight Night 122 from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China, and things didn’t go so well for “The Count.” After he was rocked and submitted by Georges […]
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping made an extremely short turnaround to face rising prospect Kelvin Gastelum in the main event of today’s (Sat., November 25, 2017) UFC Fight Night 122 from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China, and things didn’t go so well for “The Count.”
After he was rocked and submitted by Georges St-Pierre at November 4’s UFC 217, Gastelum finished Bisping with a shockingly quick first-round TKO.
The win will boost Gastelum into the upper echelon of the talented middleweight division while Bisping will most likely be headed for one last fight in his native UK this March.
Watch the post-fight conference streaming live here:
The UFC made its first trip to mainland China as they took over Shanghai at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping was seeking to rid himself of the taste of defeat following UFC 217’s showing against Georges St-Pierr…
The UFC made its first trip to mainland China as they took over Shanghai at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping was seeking to rid himself of the taste of defeat following UFC 217’s showing against Georges St-Pierre, but instead, he took a worse loss at the fist of Kelvin Gastelum. He got viciously knocked out in the first round.
Gastelum made a statement and moved right back into the hunt at middleweight.
The storied career of the Brit seems to be drawing to a close, but MMA waits for no fighter. When one fighter is on his way out there are a handful of wild dogs fighting in the alley for any piece of leftover Thanksgiving food.
The other bouts were not much of note, but the athletes still brought their A-game. The 12-fight card saw seven other finishes along with Gastelum’s first-round KO. It was an exciting evening from start-to-finish.
Who came out as the real winners and losers as the UFC begins to close of the year? Well, let’s answer that question.
Full card results from UFC Fight Night 122 will be at the end.
Michael Bisping just wanted to get back in the win column after losing his UFC middleweight title. Kelvin Gastelum had other plans.
Gastelum denied Bisping via a first-round TKO in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai, China.
The fight got…
Michael Bisping just wanted to get back in the win column after losing his UFC middleweight title. Kelvin Gastelum had other plans.
Gastelum denied Bisping via a first-round TKO in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai, China.
The fight got off to an active start as neither fighter backed away from throwing combinations. Bisping landed some strong counters while Gastelum played the role of aggressor.
However, trading punches didn’t turn out to be a smart strategy for The Count.
Gastelum‘s power was the difference; he threw a straight left down the pipe that turned the lights out. Sherdog broke down the matchup:
Damon Martin of UFC.com passed along Gastelum‘s idea for who he’d like to see next and where he stands in the division:
After the win, Gastelum acknowledged the magnitude of the win for his career:
Weight issues have often plagued Gastelum, and he has tried runs in the middleweight division after struggling to make the 170-pound welterweight limit. After losing via submission to Chris Weidman in his last trip out, this win shows he can compete at middleweight.
Of course, as Gastelum is wont to do, he’s still non-committal about making his home at 185 pounds. He’s kicked around the idea of a rematch with welterweight champion TyronWoodley recently.
“When I fought Tyron, a lot of things went wrong that weekend,” Gastelum said, per MMAjunkie. “I didn’t make the weight, I lost my first professional fight, and it just never really settled well in my heart. So I’m just going to go out in public and say it: I feel very, very salty about it. I feel like I can beat him and I can make the weight healthy and fight him—get a rematch with him.”
Gastelum last fought at welterweight against Johny Hendricks in July 2016 at UFC 200. He defeated Big Rigg by unanimous decision and has gone 2-1 with a “no contest” that was a win against VitorBelfort as a middleweight since.
This was one of the last times fans will get to see Bisping in action. The former middleweight champion took the fight on short notice as Anderson Silva was forced off the card due to a possible USADA violation.
It was an admirable move for Bisping, albeit one that didn’t necessarily work out. Still, the fight doesn’t impact Bisping‘s retirement plans. The Brit is eyeing a retirement fight in his native England.
“There’s a fight card on in London,” The Count said of a March 2018 card, perPeter Carrollof MMA Fighting. “I would love to be on that. I would love to be a part of that to say thank you to the British people who supported me and have my last fight there.”
Just weeks after fighting Georges St-Pierre at UFC 217, Bisping‘s distinguished career is coming to a close.
Kelvin Gastelum put the middleweight division on notice with a first-round knockout of 
