UFC Vegas 50 results and recap: Ankalaev wins tactical 5 rounder vs Santos, Song leaps rankings with KO

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Las Vegas, March 13: Magomed Ankalaev clinches tactical five-rounder against Thiago Santos in the headliner of UFC Vegas 50: Santos vs. Ankalaev at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday (March 12) night.

UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Ankalaev aired live in Asia on Sunday (March 13) with a 14-fight card featuring non-stop action from rankers and prospects alike, who showed excellent technique and delivered some amazing finishes.

In the main event, hard-hitting light heavyweight contenders No. 5 ranked Santos and No. 6 ranked Ankalaev respected each other's KO ability and executed their bout with measured, high level tactics.

Nail-biting clashes peppered the action which played out across the full five rounds, and Ankalaev was awarded the unanimous decision victory via the scorecards.

Following the decision win, Ankalaev said, "I wanted to fight all five rounds to test myself and see if I'm ready to go all the way to the top.

"I was expecting him to be more aggressive and grapple more, but he didn't. He was very careful. Of course it depends on UFC and what happens in the next title fight... I feel like I deserve a title fight."

In the co-main event, China's "Kung Fu Monkey" Song Yadong, No. 14 ranked bantamweight contender, took a major step into the top ten with a walk-off, highlight reel-worthy KO of No. 10 ranked Marlon Moraes.

After the first round finish, Song said, "I'm happy but I feel sorry for Marlon. He's a very good fighter and needed to win, but I need to win, too.

"Our first plan was defense, but when there was a chance (for the KO), I had to catch it. I want to fight Dominick Cruz. I respect him very much. When I was young, I watched him fight, now I want to fight with him. Let's go!"

Earlier, when light heavyweights Khalil Rountree Jr. and Karl Roberson locked horns, it was violence from the very start. Khalil came out with a vengeance in the second round and ended the fight by TKO with a barrage of punches and a body kick on the ground.

Lightweights Drew Dober and Terrance McKinney made an exciting matchup with a knockdown from McKinney in the first round, then Dober rebounded for an early TKO at the very start of the second.

In the main card opener, Alex Pereira claimed the decision over Bruno Silva in a middleweight bout after Matthew Semelsberger closed the preliminary card with a decision win in a welterweight bout against AJ Fletcher.

Earlier in the prelims, Cody Brundage shook off some adversity against Dalcha Lungiambula and finished his foe with a guillotine choke, ending their middleweight bout via first-round submission to earn his first UFC victory.

Azamat Murzakanov rescued victory from the jaws of defeat in the light heavyweight opener, as he scored a come from behind stoppage of Tafon Nchukwi with a flush knee to the head to keep his unbeaten record intact in his UFC debut.

Also on the preliminary card, JJ Aldrich and Javid Basharat earned decision wins, while Damon Jackson, Miranda Maverick and Guido Cannetti claimed stoppage wins in their respective bouts.

UFC Vegas 50 Final Results

Main Card

1. Light Heavyweight Bout: Magomed Ankalaev defeated Thiago Santos via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)

2. Bantamweight Bout: Song Yadong defeated Marlon Moraes via knockout at 2:06 of the first round

3. Featherweight Bout: Sodiq Yusuff defeated Alex Caceres via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

4. Light Heavyweight Bout: Khalil Rountree Jr. defeated Karl Roberson via TKO (Strikes) at 0:25 of the second round

5. Lightweight Bout: Drew Dober defeated Terrance McKinney via TKO (Strikes) at 3:17 of the first round

6. Middleweight Bout: Alex Pereira defeated Bruno Silva via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Preliminary Card

1. Welterweight Bout: Matthew Semelsberger defeated AJ Fletcher via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

2. Women's Flyweight Bout: JJ Aldrich defeated Gillian Robertson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

3. Bantamweight Bout: Javid Basharat defeated Trevin Jones via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

4. Featherweight Bout: Damon Jackson defeated Kamuela Kirk via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:42 of the second round

5. Women's Flyweight Bout: Miranda Maverick defeated Sabina Mazo via submission (rear naked choke) at 2:15 of the second round

6. Middleweight Bout: Cody Brundage defeated Dalcha Lungiambula via submission (guillotine choke) at 3:41 of the first round

7. Bantamweight Bout: Guido Cannetti defeated Kris Moutinho via TKO (Strikes) at 2:07 of the first round

8. Light Heavyweight Bout: Azamat Murzakanov defeated Tafon Nchukwi via TKO (Strikes) at :44 of the third round