Usman
Nurmagomedov has addressed his brother Umar
Nurmagomedov’s knockout loss to Yadong Song
and the discourse surrounding his immediate actions after seeing
his brother hit the canvas.

Song flatlined Umar with an uppercut in the second round of their
bantamweight clash in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. Just as Song ended the
UFC Shanghai headliner with some follow-up hammer-fists, Usman
stormed the cage to check on his brother.

Song began celebrating and briefly crossed paths with a concerned
Usman, who seemingly loaded up an instinctive elbow strike in the
heat of the moment, but didn't follow through.

Usman denies trying to hit Yadong Song after rushing toward the
cage following Umar Nurmagomedov's knockout

Usman took to social media in the aftermath of UFC Shanghai to
address his brother's first-ever professional loss via a finish and
also touched on fans accusing him of trying to hit a celebrating
Song. The
Professional Fighters League star first downplayed the
magnitude of Umar's loss by putting things into perspective.

“People are making such a huge tragedy out of this, they should
just calm down,†Usman wrote on Instagram in Russian. “There are
things far worse. You don't have to think for long, just look at
what is happening in the world.â€

He then denied that he intended to hit Song and slammed those
criticizing him.

“And regarding the claims that I supposedly wanted to hit his
opponent, if I had wanted to, I would have hit him,†Usman added.
“You angry, petty, and jealous people. Your problem is that you
have never had and never will never have an understanding of family
love.â€

Usman is currently a free agent, having exhausted his PFL contract.
He is rumored to be signing with the UFC once his exclusive 90-day
negotiation window with the PFL concludes.

Yadong
Song believes Usman
Nurmagomedov didn't mean to cause trouble by jumping the cage
following his brother Umar
Nurmagomedov's knockout loss.

Song (24-9-1) was a massive underdog against Usman's brother, Umar
(20-2), going into their recent main event clash in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. However, Song flatlined Umar
with an uppercut in the second round in a huge upset. Usman
immediately jumped inside the Octagon and rushed towards his
unconscious brother, nearly colliding with Song.

The
Professional Fighters League star even appeared to
instinctively load up on an elbow strike as Song ran past him, but
didn't follow through.

Song explains why he believes Usman Nurmagomedov wasn’t trying
to attack him

Song has now come to Usman's defense after the unbeaten Russian
drew criticism online for his post-fight actions at
UFC Shanghai. The Chinese bantamweight notes that an official
rushed towards Usman as soon as he jumped the cage. According to
Song, he then almost collided with Usman, who put his hands up in
defense. The former also fully understands the latter's actions,
considering he'd just witnessed his older brother get knocked
out.

“Watching the slow motion, it looked like he was turning around to
throw an elbow or something, but actually I understand because they
are brothers, you know?†Song said in a recent interview. “The
internet said he wanted to maliciously attack me; he just thought I
was going over to attack him. Because he went over to check on his
brother, and suddenly someone runs over, as you'd definitely react
that way.â€

“The Kung Fu Kid†believes the PFL lightweight champ must have
already been startled by the official running towards him.

“He thought I was going to attack him,†Song added. “Because when
he went to see it, a person suddenly ran over. You can see it in
slow motion; he closed his eyes. And then I ran over there and he
defended it. That's it.â€

ðŸ™ŒðŸ—£ï¸ Song Yadong speaks on Usman
Nurmagomedov jumping the cage, he believes Usman did NOT intend
on maliciously attacking him:

“Watching the slow motion, it looked like he was turning around to
throw an elbow or something, but actually I understand because they
are brothers,…

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight)
September 1, 2026

Ce Liu
claims he has unfinished business with Junior
Tafa.

Liu (4-1) was scheduled to make his
Ultimate Fighting Championship debut against Tafa (7-6) in
front of a home crowd in Shanghai, China, on Aug. 29. However, Tafa
withdrew due to undisclosed reasons five days before fight night
and was replaced on short notice by Levi
Rodrigues, who suffered a first-round knockout loss to Liu.

Ce Liu calls for Junior Tafa fight after first-round UFC
Shanghai knockout

The Liu vs. Rodrigues bout was a fast-paced back-and-forth affair,
with both fighters having moments of success before Liu piled on
the pressure in the final minute of the first round. The Chinese
light heavyweight ultimately flatlined his Brazilian counterpart,
opening his account in the UFC in style.

Liu subsequently called for a rebooking against Tafa.

“I want to challenge someone — my last opponent,†Liu said
backstage after his win. “I want to settle the score with him in
our next match.â€

“The Oriental Dragon†has finished all four of his pro wins so far,
going past the first round only once in victory. Meanwhile, Tafa is
3-6 in the UFC and coming off a first-round knockout loss against
Iwo
Baraniewski.

🚨FIGHTER CALLOUT🚨

Liu Ce Calls Out Junior Tafa
After His
#UFCShanghai Win To Rebook a Fight With Him!

Who Wins This Matchup If Rebooked 🧠pic.twitter.com/tTrWTLJXR1

— Kevin (@realkevink)
August 30, 2026