Petr Yan News

Cole Shelton - November 5, 2025

UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili expects to fight a much better version of Petr Yan at UFC 323. Dvalishvili fought Yan back in March of 2023 in the main event of a Fight Night card. Although Dvalishvili was the underdog going into the fight, he dominated the Russian en route to a lopsided decision.

Harry Kettle - October 22, 2025

UFC star Sean O’Malley has issued a warning to former rival Merab Dvalishvili ahead of his UFC 323 rematch against Petr Yan. In the main event of UFC 323 in December, Merab Dvalishvili will defend his UFC bantamweight championship against Petr Yan. It will serve as a rematch following their first meeting a few years back, which ‘The Machine’ won to put himself in line for a shot at the belt. If Merab wins, it will take him to 4-0 in 2025, cementing his position as Fighter of the Year beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 19, 2025

Petr Yan’s injury claims have drawn the ire of Merab Dvalishvili’s coach. Yan is set to challenge Dvalishvili for the UFC Bantamweight Championship on Dec. 6. The title fight will headline UFC 323 in Las Vegas. This will be a rematch, as “The Machine” defeated “No Mercy” back in 2021.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - October 15, 2025

One well-known UFC analyst and coach isn’t convinced that Petr Yan can find an answer against Merab Dvalishvili. It was announced by Dana White that Dvalishvili is scheduled to put his bantamweight title on the line against Yan at UFC 323 on Dec. 6. If Dvalishvili can emerge victorious, he’ll set a new record for the most UFC title defenses in a single year. He’s already thwarted challenges from Umar Nurmagomedov, Sean O’Malley, and Cory Sandhagen this year.

Curtis Calhoun - October 13, 2025

UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili got his wish for a quick turnaround after his latest victory just weeks ago at UFC 320. UFC CEO Dana White announced on Monday that UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili, who defeated Cory Sandhagen just weeks ago at UFC 320, will headline UFC 323 in December.

Curtis Calhoun - October 7, 2025

Former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan revealed he fought Merab Dvalishvili significantly compromised ahead of a likely rematch. UFC bantamweight titleholder Merab Dvalishvili retained his title in largely dominant fashion against Cory Sandhagen at UFC 320 last Saturday. Despite Sandhagen proving to be a tough test on the feet, Dvalishvili challenged Sandhagen with his vastly improved striking en route to a decision victory.

Harry Kettle - October 5, 2025

UFC bantamweight contender Petr Yan has made it clear that he wants to fight Merab Dvalishvili in his next outing. As we know, Merab Dvalishvili was as impressive as ever at UFC 320 last night. He defeated Cory Sandhagen to successfully defend his UFC bantamweight championship for the third time and now, fans are already starting to look ahead to what could be next for him. On paper, it doesn’t seem as if there are any immediate challenges that lie in front of him – but Petr Yan disagrees with that assessment.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - August 31, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili has an idea of who should get a bantamweight title shot after UFC 320. Dvalishvili is scheduled to put his gold at stake against Cory Sandhagen on Oct. 4. The bout will serve as the co-main event of UFC 320. “The Machine” has long called Sandhagen a worthy challenger, and the two even had a staredown inside the Octagon after Dvalishvili defeated Sean O’Malley at UFC 316.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 27, 2025

Petr Yan isn’t entertaining the idea of a showdown with Umar Nurmagomedov. Yan competed in the co-main event of UFC Abu Dhabi this past Saturday. He went one-on-one with Marcus McGhee in a bout that many considered to be a potential trap fight. The bout went the distance and Yan ultimately scored the unanimous decision victory. With the win, “No Mercy” is now hoping to secure another bantamweight title fight.

Cole Shelton - July 24, 2025

Petr Yan is hoping to secure the next bantamweight title shot at UFC Abu Dhabi. Yan is set to take on McGhee in an intriguing fight, as the American is taking a massive step-up in competition. Although Yan could have gotten a title shot, he took this fight to cement himself as the next title contender.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 23, 2025

Petr Yan is viewing his next fight as an audition for another UFC title opportunity. Yan, a former UFC Bantamweight Champion, will go one-on-one with Marcus McGhee at UFC Abu Dhabi on Saturday. While some are wondering if this could be a trap fight for Yan, “No Mercy” is motivated by what he believes will be a high-stakes matchup.

Cole Shelton - July 22, 2025

Marcus McGhee was surprised he got the call to fight Petr Yan at UFC Abu Dhabi. McGhee is ranked 13th at bantamweight and thought he’d get a top-10 opponent next. Yet, he got the call to fight former champion and third-ranked bantamweight Petr Yan at UFC bantamweight, which was a surprise to him.

Harry Kettle - June 4, 2025

Former UFC champion Sean O’Malley has named the hardest-hitting opponent he’s faced in the promotion. This weekend, Sean O’Malley will attempt to do what a lot of ex-champions have struggled to do in the Ultimate Fighting Championship – win back their gold. He’ll try and do so against the man who took it from him last year, Merab Dvalishvili. While ‘The Machine’ is widely considered to be the favorite, everyone knows that ‘Suga’ possesses the kind of power and precision that can change a fight at any given moment.

BJ Penn Staff - May 30, 2025

Over the last few years, Sean O’Malley has become one of the biggest stars in the UFC. It’s been a dream come true for the bantamweight star, and he remembers the specific fight where he realized everything he had hoped for was becoming a reality. It was in the lead up to a 2022 fight with former bantamweight champ Petr Yan that O’Malley recognized his dreams were coming true. At the time, O’Malley was ranked way below Yan in the bantamweight rankings. So much so that many fans felt the fight was a huge mismatch. In the end, however, O’Malley defeated the former champ by decision in a thrilling, three-round war, cementing himself as a legit title contender in the offing.

Harry Kettle - May 30, 2025

UFC star Petr Yan has been booked against Sean O’Malley’s teammate Marcus McGhee – and fans have some thoughts about it. Over the course of the last five years, Petr Yan has been on an interesting journey. From bantamweight champion to top contender, he’s been through a whole lot of ups and downs. Now, after getting back on the winning trail, he’s trying desperately to vault his way back into contention.

BJ Penn Staff - May 6, 2025

Petr Yan will be taking a huge step down in competition for his next UFC fight — unless his fellow contender Cory Sandhagen agrees to a matchup. Yan is the former UFC bantamweight champion, and is ranked No. 2 in the weight class at present. He is currently riding back-to-back decision wins over Song Yadong and Deiveson Figueiredo. Ordinarily, that might be enough to warrant a title shot. There’s just one problem. Yan has already lost to champion Merab Dvalishvili, as well as No. 1 contender Sean O’Malley, who will challenge for the belt at UFC 316 in June.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - February 14, 2025

Merab Dvalishvili has two possible challengers in mind for his UFC Bantamweight Championship. Dvalishvili is riding high following his impressive performance against Umar Nurmagomedov in the co-main event of UFC 311. The Georgian titleholder was able to thwart his opponent’s grappling efforts and managed to outwork him for a unanimous decision victory. It was the first successful title defense for Dvalishvili and now he is looking ahead.

Harry Kettle - February 3, 2025

UFC star Petr Yan gave his former bantamweight rival Aljamain Sterling an Oscar in an amusing interaction recently. Petr Yan was once considered to be one of the best pound for pound fighters in the UFC. In the eyes of some, that may still be the case. However, his career suddenly went in a very different direction when he began his rivalry with Aljamain Sterling. Despite controlling most of their first fight, Yan wound up losing the UFC bantamweight championship to Aljamain as a result of an illegal knee.