Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Yadong Song headlines UFC Shanghai after weigh-ins, with three fighters missing weight

The UFC’s return to Shanghai is set after Friday’s weigh-ins, with the main event taking its place atop a 13-fight card. Bantamweight contenders Umar Nurmagomedov and Yadong Song were both on the mark, clearing weight without issues as they prepare for what is billed as the top matchup of the night.

Nurmagomedov, a UFC veteran carrying a 20-1 record entering the event, is coming off his first career loss to Merab Dvalishvili. Since then, he has responded with decision wins over Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo, and he has compiled an 8-1 mark inside the Octagon. At Friday’s weigh-in, Nurmagomedov hit 135.5 pounds for his scheduled main-event bantamweight fight.

Song, listed at 28 years old and coming into the bout with a 23-9-1 record with one no contest, is attempting to land the largest win of his UFC run. Recent form has been mixed: he is described as 2-1 in his last three fights, with wins over Deiveson Figueiredo and Henry Cejudo, sandwiched around a decision loss to Sean O’Malley. Song weighed in at 136.0 pounds.

While the two headliners made weight, three other fighters missed their contracted limits, creating penalties and adding an extra layer of uncertainty to the evening’s undercard. In the flyweight division, Andre Lima came in one pound over the limit for his bout against Namsrai Batbayar, and the report states Lima will be fined 20 percent of his purse as a result.

In the strawweight pairing, the weigh-in also produced complications for both competitors. Jingnan Xiong weighed in at one pound over the strawweight limit, while Julia Polastri was listed as 2.5 pounds over, per the weigh-in reporting. Those misses mean at least one side will be absorbing the competitive and procedural consequences that come with being out of range.

For fight fans tracking how the UFC stages overseas cards, weigh-in outcomes matter beyond paperwork. Even when the main event remains intact, missed weight can shift how a matchup plays out, particularly if one fighter is forced to compensate for a late change in preparation or expects an altered strategy. It also underscores how disciplined preparation must be when traveling and operating on tight pre-fight timelines.

UFC Shanghai is scheduled to stream live on Paramount+. The report lists prelim coverage beginning at 3 a.m. ET (midnight PT), with the main card set for 6 a.m. ET (3 a.m. PT), bringing the headliners into primetime for U.S. viewers on a morning broadcast window.

With the card confirmed at the top and reshaped by the penalties below it, the next checkpoint will be fight night itself, where Nurmagomedov and Song can turn the bantamweight matchup into a defining statement. For the undercard, attention will likely return to how the fighters who missed weight handle the extra pressure and whether the bouts stay competitive from bell to bell.