Athletes
Fighters on the Rise | UFC Macau
Spotlighting Three Ascending Talents Set To Compete Inside The Octagon At UFC Fight Night: Yan vs Figueiredo
The last time the UFC ventured to Macau, the emerging names on the card included a pair of men that would go on to carry gold in the welterweight division — former interim champion Colby Covington, who debuted with a first-round stoppage win over Wang Anying, and former undisputed titleholder Tyron Woodley, who registered a first-round knockout win over Dong Hyun Kim in the co-main event.
Fighters On the Rise | UFC Macau
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Fighters On the Rise | UFC Macau
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Now, a decade later, the promotion returns to the “Las Vegas of the East” for a Fight Night event headlined by a pair of former champions looking to solidify their places in the bantamweight pecking order, as Petr Yan takes on streaking ex-flyweight ruler Deiveson Figueiredo in a highly anticipated five-round affair.
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Prior to the headliners hitting the Octagon, however, a trio of up-and-coming competitors will venture into the eight-sided proving ground looking to take the next step forward in their respective careers. Each is at a different stage of their respective UFC journeys, but each has exhibited a ton of promise, and looks to build on their momentum this weekend in Macau.
Here’s a closer look at those competitors in the latest edition of Fighters on the Rise.
Wang Cong
Wang Cong Secures First Round Knockout | UFC Fight Night Cannonier vs Borralho
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Wang Cong Secures First Round Knockout | UFC Fight Night Cannonier vs Borralho
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A pair of 2024 appearances under the UFC banner have made it clear that Wang Cong is someone to pay very close attention to in the flyweight division.
After registering a unanimous decision win over UFC veteran Wu Yanan in January at Kunlun Fight 95, Wang took part in a non-tournament bout on the second episode of this season’s Road to UFC, collecting a first-round submission win over Paula Luna that pushed her professional MMA record to 5-0. The effort was enough to merit an opportunity to compete inside the Octagon, and in August, the 32-year-old made a splash in her promotional debut, knocking out Victoria Leonardo in just 62 seconds to collect a second straight finish and a Performance of the Night bonus.
Part of what has made Wang such an alluring new addition to the roster is her overall history in combat sports, as she claimed gold in Sanda at the World Wushu Championships in 2013 and the Asian Games in 2014, while also owning an 8-0-1 professional kickboxing record, which includes a victory over two-time and current flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko; she also won a silver medal at the amateur boxing world championships in 2019.
Her accolades are vast, varied, and significant, and her talent has jumped off the screen thus far as she’s steamrolled a pair of overmatched opponents. She brings a different level of power and aggressiveness to the Octagon than many of her contemporaries, and for as strong as her second and third efforts of the year were, it’s the decision win over Wu Yanan that resonates most.
While the now 28-year-old Chinese athlete departed the promotion on a four-fight slide and managed just a single victory in six appearances, Wu had won 12 of 13 bouts prior to her UFC run, with her lone loss coming to bantamweight Top 15 fixture Yana Santos, and the disparity in the amount of experience the two women possessed — at least in terms of MMA — was vast, and yet Wang was able to secure the decision victory in just her fourth professional appearance and put herself on the UFC radar.
Saturday’s bout with Gabriella Fernandes is a chance to face off with a physically imposing opponent coming off a hard-fought split decision win last time out. The 31-year-old Brazilian earned back-to-back finishes prior to arriving in the UFC and has looked more comfortable in the Octagon with each successive outing.
READ: Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Macau
Flyweight is undergoing some changes at the moment and Wang is one of the more interesting competitors to watch going forward in the talent-rich 125-pound ranks.
Carlos Ulberg
Carlos Ulberg | Best Finishes
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Carlos Ulberg | Best Finishes
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The strapping New Zealander Ulberg hit the UFC amidst much fanfare as the latest member of the City Kickboxing crew to matriculate to the Octagon, having earned his place with a first-round knockout win over Bruno Oliveira on Season 4 of Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS).
In his promotional debut at UFC 259, Ulberg hit Kennedy Nzechukwu with everything but the kitchen sink and still couldn’t get the Fortis MMA representative out of there, ultimately resulting in his fading and getting finished just after the midway point of the second round. That was seven fights ago and Ulberg hasn’t lost since.
Preview The Three RTU Season 3 Tournament Finals In Macau This Saturday
After collecting a unanimous decision win over Fabio Cherant at UFC 271 to get things moving in the right direction, the 34-year-old “Black Jag” has since added five straight finishes to his resume to run his overall winning streak to six heading into his pivotal showdown with Volkan Oezdemir on Saturday. Last time out, Ulberg needed just 12 seconds to separate Alonzo Menifield from his consciousness, good for the second fastest stoppage win of the year.
Oezdemir represents a clear step up in competition for the impressive finisher — a 27-fight veteran who has previously challenged for the light heavyweight title, shared the Octagon with a litany of the best light heavyweights of the last several years, and is coming off consecutive finishes of his own, most recently having sparked Johnny Walker in June.
This is the “divisional stalwart” challenge that Ulberg has been working towards this whole time, and if he’s able to get by “No Time” on Saturday, he should find himself sharing the Octagon with another established contender whenever he makes his first appearance of 2025.
Lone’er Kavanagh
In the first fight of the first week of this past season of Dana White’s Contender Series, Kavanagh stepped into a left hook in his highly anticipated clash with fellow unbeaten prospect An Tuan Ho and put the MMA Lab product to sleep.
For my money, it was the top knockout of the season and ratcheted up the excitement for the GB Top Team man’s promotional debut.
That moment comes this weekend in Macau, where the 25-year-old unbeaten flyweight faces off with fellow newcomer Jose Ochoa in a preliminary card matchup that is sure to draw a large number of eyeballs. Undefeated in seven pro fights, Kavanagh faced good competition fighting under the Cage Warriors banner prior to making the trek to Las Vegas to kick of Season 8, and then stopped a tremendous talent in Ho to earn his contract.
WATCH: Yan vs Faber | Figueiredo vs Vera | Petr Yan's Greatest Hits | Figueiredo's Top Finishes
There is a maturity to Kavanagh’s game that jumps off the screen when you watch him compete: he’s measured, technical, calculating; he picks his shots well, never seems rushed, but also doesn’t spend too much time standing opposite his opponent taking pictures either. He’s shown solid power and good finishing abilities, which are plusses in the flyweight division, and working with the experienced crew at GB Top Team is certainly a big positive, as well.
Ochoa was originally scheduled to compete this past season on Contender Series, but was scratched from his bout with Jack Duffy, and instead transitions straight into this UFC here. He too sports an unbeaten 7-0 mark with 1 NC, most recently collecting a first-round submission win under the LFA banner, but outside of that contest, the Chute Boxe Diego Lima representative has faced largely untested opposition.
Expectations are high for Kavanagh after his kicking off Season 8 in style and his overall body of work prior to arriving on the big stage, and if he can turn in an impressive performance in his debut, the excitement surrounding the promising newcomer will only continue to grow.
UFC Fight Night: Yan vs Figueiredo took place live from Galaxy Arena in Macau, China on November 23, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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