After the madness that was UFC 279, the promotion hopes to get back into the normal flow of things when bantamweight contenders Cory Sandhagen and Song Yadong go head-to-head in the Octagon at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday (7 p.m. ET on ESPN+, with prelims at 4 p.m. on ESPN+).
Sandhagen, ranked No. 7 in ESPN's bantamweight rankings, is a former interim title contender. He is coming off of back-to-back losses against Petr Yan and TJ Dillashaw. Before those losses, Sandhagen had won seven of his last eight fights.
Song enters the fight on a three-fight winning streak. His most recent win was a first-round finish against former title contender Marlon Moraes. Song could make his first appearance on the ESPN divisional rankings with a win this weekend.
Jeff Wagenheim spoke to ESPN UFC analyst Din Thomas to get his perspective on the main event, while betting experts Ian Parker and Reed Kuhn added their insights and analysis for the main event and intriguing bets lower down the card.
Editor's note: Responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.