'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Bantamweights Casey Kenney (16-4-1) and Song Yadong (15-5-1) showcased exemplary sportsmanship after their bout at UFC 265.
The two warriors were spotted sharing a drink in the aftermath of their grueling battle last weekend. Yadong uploaded a video of the pair having a beverage together to his TikTok account:
Yadong and Kenney clashed in the opening bout of UFC 265's main card. Their constant back-and-forth striking exchange lasted three-round distance. Yadong displayed elusive counterstriking and was awarded a split decision win (29-28, 28-29, 30-27).
As the crowd at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas rained boos upon hearing the judges' verdict, Casey Kenney hopped onto the fence to protest the decision.
The 30-year-old was seemingly distraught by the close call. However, going by his post-fight celebration with Yadong, it appears that the two exciting bantamweights have no bad blood between them, despite going to war last Saturday.
Check out Song Yadong's octagon interview below:
"Everybody lies" - Song Yadong admits giving an inaccurate pre-fight game plan
Leading up to UFC 265, Yadong had mentioned that his approach against Casey Kenney would be more grappling focused.
However, contrary to his pre-fight revelations, the Chinese native mostly utilized his striking to secure the decision win. He addressed his intentionally inaccurate game plan during the UFC 265 post-fight press conference.
“Because of my striking, I felt better. I didn’t need to wrestle him… Everybody lies (before the fight), not (telling) the truth. Nobody says the truth.” (h/t MMA Junkie)
Furthermore, Song Yadong revealed that Kenney was a bit slower than he expected. The 23-year-old believes he had an edge over the American throughout the bout.
"I feel like I had the advantage standing up so my original gameplan was to take him down, but I just feel like i can take care of him standing up. I feel like I'm a stand-up fighter. I feel like I got every round. Maybe some of them not so significant, but I feel like I got every round. He is a nice guy. I want to have one more fight before the end of this year," said Song Yadong in his post-fight interview.
