Song Yadong's guillotine submission of Figueiredo at UFC Macao added to Team Alpha Male's long legacy with the choke, which has now accounted for three UFC championship-level finishes under the gym's system. Urijah Faber previously used the guillotine to submit Jens Pulver and Dominick Cruz, and counting other fighters from the team the gym has recorded more than ten guillotine finishes in top-level competition.
Song Yadong's guillotine choke finish of Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC Macao has cemented a remarkable piece of Team Alpha Male history, bringing the Sacramento gym's championship-level guillotine finishes to three.
The submission added a new chapter to a legacy built largely by Urijah Faber. The 47-year-old American, who compiled a 35-11-0 professional record during his career, used the guillotine to finish both Jens Pulver and Dominick Cruz at the championship level, establishing it as a signature weapon within the Team Alpha Male system. Standing five-foot-six with a 67-inch reach, Faber averaged 0.8 submission attempts per 15 minutes across his career and landed strikes at a 40 percent accuracy rate, making him one of the more complete fighters of his era at bantamweight and featherweight.
Pulver, the 51-year-old southpaw who finished with a 27-19-1 record, was one of the pioneers of the lighter weight classes in American MMA. Cruz, now 41 and a 24-4-0 veteran, built one of the sport's great defensive reputations, averaging 2.82 takedowns per 15 minutes and an elusive 3.91 significant strikes landed per minute — numbers that make Faber's finish of him all the more notable in hindsight.
Why it matters
- Song Yadong's finish extends Team Alpha Male's guillotine legacy to three UFC championship-level submissions, underlining the gym's long-standing emphasis on the technique.
- The broader tally of more than ten guillotine finishes across the roster in top-level competition suggests a systemic coaching emphasis rather than individual improvisation.
- The result ties current fighters to the gym's founding identity, connecting Song's generation directly to the Faber era that defined Team Alpha Male's early reputation.
