Petr Yan News

Drake Riggs - February 2, 2021

In the build-up to the long-awaited bantamweight showdown between champion Petr Yan and challenger Aljamain Sterling, there’s been no shortage of trash talk. However, things have gone a bit quieter on Sterling’s end in the eyes of Yan.

Adam Martin - January 29, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan was critical of Conor McGregor’s performance against Dustin Poirier, saying he looked “fat and old.” McGregor took on Poirier in the main event of last weekend’s UFC 257 and lost as a big favorite when he got knocked out in the second round. After a year away from the Octagon due to various issues, McGregor did not perform well against Poirier. Though he had a strong first round, his conditioning failed him in the second, and after Poirier’s deadly low kicks started to limit the mobility of McGregor, Poirier took advantage of it when he was able to back McGregor against the fence and TKO him.

Adam Martin - January 28, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan says he is open to fighting TJ Dillashaw as long as the price is right and he doesn’t use PEDs. Yan is set to fight No. 1 contender Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on March 13. While he has a tough fight coming up against “Funk Master,” Yan can’t help but look to what other challenges there are in the division. One of those is Dillashaw, the former UFC bantamweight champion. After two years away from the Octagon due to a USADA suspension, Dillashaw is now eligible to return to action, and UFC president Dana White recently confirmed that he could fight for the belt in his first fight back.

Adam Martin - January 10, 2021

Former UFC champion Henry Cejudo says he would KO current flyweight kingpin Deiveson Figueiredo if they meet inside the Octagon. Cejudo was, of course, both the UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion before deciding to give up both titles and walking away from the sport. Cejudo retired last May following a TKO win over Dominick Cruz at UFC 249, though he has teased a return to the Octagon in the months since. Not long after Cejudo retired, Figueiredo won the vacant flyweight title over Joseph Benavidez. Since then, Figueiredo has become a bigger name in the sport and he’s tried to coax Cejudo out of retirement.

Cole Shelton - January 7, 2021

Petr Yan will still look to defend his bantamweight title for the first time against Aljamain Sterling. According to MMAJunkie, Yan and Sterling will meet on March 6 at UFC 259 at a location TBD. The bout is also the third title fight on the card.

Adam Martin - December 23, 2020

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan sent a message to top-ranked contender Aljamain Sterling, telling his rival that he will see him soon. Yan and Sterling were supposed to fight at UFC 256 earlier this month but the bout fight apart and was rescheduled for early 2021. There is no confirmed date for the re-booking as of yet, but it could happen somewhere in between February and April based on the UFC’s upcoming schedule. With the fight still in the works, both Yan and Sterling continue to trade jabs with each other on social media. After seeing that Sterling had a successful wrestling match, Yan took to his Twitter to congratulate him and also send a message.

Adam Martin - December 20, 2020

UFC bantamweight contender Jose Aldo suggested four potential opponents for his next fight inside the Octagon, including Dominick Cruz. Aldo defeated Marlon Vera via unanimous decision in the co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 17 event. It was a huge win for Aldo, who needed to get back in the victory column badly after losing his last three fights in a row. By beating Vera, Aldo proved that he belongs in the top-10 at 135lbs, and it puts him in line for a big fight his next time out. Aldo called out former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw in his post-fight interview after beating Vera, and now he has a few other names to add to the list.

Harry Kettle - December 11, 2020

Former two-weight UFC champion Henry Cejudo has taken a shot at bantamweight rivals Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling. While he may officially be retired from mixed martial arts, Cejudo is never too far away from the news cycle and is quite clearly interested in a return to the UFC one day. Whether or not that takes place at bantamweight, flyweight or featherweight, though, remains to be seen.

Tom Taylor - December 4, 2020

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has responded to the former champion TJ Dillashaw’s recent demands for a title shot. Dillashaw has not fought in close to two years, having been suspended for his use of the injectable-only banned substance EPO ahead of a 2019 TKO loss to Henry Cejudo.

Cole Shelton - November 23, 2020

Petr Yan has explained why he won’t be fighting Aljamain Sterling on Dec. 12 at UFC 256. Yan and Sterling were set to headline the year-end pay-per-view but on Sunday it was revealed the fight was off.

Harry Kettle - November 23, 2020

UFC bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling has reacted to the news that his title fight with Petr Yan is off the upcoming UFC 256 event. The bout between the two rivals for the Bantamweight Championship was set to go down next month after endless spats over social media. Now, however, due to undisclosed reasons, the fight will be pushed back to early 2021 with February being touted as a possibility.

Adam Martin - November 22, 2020

The upcoming main event at UFC 256 between UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling has reportedly been postponed until 2021. Yan vs. Sterling was set to headline UFC 256 on December 12 in Las Vegas in the wake of an injury to UFC women’s featherweight champion Amanda Nunes, whose title defense against Megan Anderson fell apart. However, it looks like Yan and Sterling won’t get a chance to fight before the year is up. According to Russian news outlet TASS, Yan vs. Sterling is reportedly off of UFC 256 and the fight has been postponed until 2021.

Cole Shelton - November 4, 2020

Petr Yan is confident he will defend his bantamweight title against Aljamain Sterling and will do so in devastating fashion. In the co-main event of UFC 256, Yan and Sterling will finally get the chance to share the Octagon. Heading into the fight, many pundits are split on who will win, but for the Russian, he plans on making Sterling be knocked out cold like Jorge Masvidal did to Ben Askren.

Adam Martin - October 15, 2020

The opening odds have been released for the upcoming UFC bantamweight title fight between champion Petr Yan and challenger Aljamain Sterling. The UFC officially announced this week that Yan will make his first title defense against Sterling in the co-main event of UFC 256, which takes place on December 12. Sterling has been waiting for his title shot even since submitting Cory Sandhagen back at UFC 250 in June, while Yan is fresh off of a vicious fifth-round TKO win over Jose Aldo to win the belt.

Tom Taylor - October 14, 2020

Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling were both quick to react to their long-rumored bantamweight title fight being made official. Yan, the UFC bantamweight champion, will attempt to defend his title against Sterling in the co-main event of UFC 256 on December 12. News of this fight was announced by UFC President Dana White through Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports.

Tom Taylor - October 14, 2020

Petr Yan is set to make his first defense of the UFC bantamweight title opposite Aljamain Sterling in the co-main event of UFC 256. UFC President Dana White announced this exciting news in an interview with Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports. He also confirmed that Amanda Nunes’ featherweight title defense against Megan Anderson will serve as the card’s main event.

Harry Kettle - October 7, 2020

UFC bantamweight Aljamain Sterling is staying ready in case he gets the all for a title shot against Petr Yan in December. Sterling has built up a five-fight winning streak in the last few years with his latest victory being a decisive and impressive submission win over Cory Sandhagen at UFC 250 earlier this year. One month later, at UFC 251, Petr Yan reached the pinnacle of the 135-pound division when he defeated Jose Aldo to claim the vacant Bantamweight Championship.

Tom Taylor - July 30, 2020

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has sent a scathing message to Cody Garbrandt, who recently laid out plans to drop down to the flyweight division. Garbrandt, who recently burst back into bantamweight title contention with a knockout win over Raphael Assuncao, discussed his plans for a drop to flyweight in a recent interview with ESPN.