Currently holding the No. 2 spot in the UFC bantamweight rankings, Petr Yan has a 16–4 record in professional mixed martial arts.
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Petr Evgenyevich Yan was born on February 11, 1993. He is a trained mixed martial artist from Russia. He used to hold the title of UFC Bantamweight Champion and presently fights in the Bantamweight division of the organization. Yan, a former ACB Bantamweight Champion, formerly competed in Absolute Championship Berkut. He is ranked #2 in the UFC bantamweight standings as of December 13, 2022.
In December 2014, Yan made his MMA debut at the Eurasian Fighting Championship – Baikal Fight. Murad Bakiev, a newcomer, was defeated by him in the third round via knockout. Yan entered into a deal with the Russian organization Absolute Championship Berkut in 2015. After his promotion debut, when he faced off against Brazilian fighter Renato Velame, who at the time had previously fought 26 times in his MMA career, he reportedly won a large number of admirers.
But Yan prevailed in this battle by decision. In his third bout, Yan defeated Kharon Orzumiev in just 47 seconds by first-round submission. Yan defeated Artur Mirzakhanyan in the opening round of his next fight, which took place at Professional Fight Night 10: Russia Cup.
Yan entered the ACB Bantamweight Grand Prix to make his ACB debut. Yan won over Kharon Orzumiev and Renato Velame in the Quarterfinals to go to the Grand Prix final against Murad Kalamov. Yan won the Grand Prix by unanimous decision against Kalamov and will face Magomed Magomedov for the vacant ACB Bantamweight Championship at ACB 32.
Yan was defeated in a closely contested split decision. He overcame the defeat by winning by unanimous decision over Ed Arthur to earn a rematch with Magomedov for the ACB Bantamweight Championship at AFC 57. To win the ACB Bantamweight Championship this time, Yan defeated Magomedov by unanimous decision. Yan subsequently successfully defended his championship against Matheus Mattos by way of a third-round TKO (punches). Yan joined the UFC in 2018 and left the promotion following the bout.
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At UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Edwards, Petr Yan faced Teruto Ishihara in his UFC debut. Ishihara was KO’d by Yan in the opening round (punches). After winning, Yan won three consecutive fights before competing against Urijah Faber at UFC 245. Yan outperformed Faber and used a head kick to KO him in the third round to win his first Performance of the Night bonus in the nation. After Henry Cejudo declared his retirement from the sport, Yan challenged Jose Aldo for the vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship at UFC 251.
Yan outperformed Aldo throughout the contest and TKO’d him with punches in the fifth round to win the UFC Bantamweight Championship. He subsequently faced Aljamain Sterling in UFC 259 for his first championship defense. In terms of striking and grappling, Yan outperformed Aljamain. It seemed like Yan would have an easy battle, but while Aljamain was on the ground, Yan kneed him illegally. Following the unlawful knee, Sterling was unable to continue the battle and walked away. Because of this, he was given a DQ victory in the bout and elevated to the position of UFC Bantamweight Champion. Petr Yan made history by being the first fighter in the UFC to have his title stripped by a DQ.
Yan recovered from the championship defeat and competed against Cory Sandhagen for the interim UFC Bantamweight Championship at UFC 267. Yan emerged as the interim UFC Bantamweight Champion after winning the duel by unanimous decision. At UFC 272, a championship unification rematch against Aljamain Sterling was slated for March 5, 2022. On January 11, 2022, it was revealed that the fight would now take place at UFC 273, which would take place on April 9. Yan was defeated by a split decision.
On October 22, 2022, Yan and Sean O’Malley squared off at UFC 280. He was defeated by a split decision. The outcome was viewed as being very contentious, with many fans and competitors passionately stating that Yan should have won. 26 media sources evaluated the fight favorably for Yan, 25 of them.
The Sports Daily estimates that Petr Yan has made $1,303,500 during his time competing in the UFC. For his title match against Cory Sandhagen, he received $282,000. Yan has a $1.5 million net worth. Gorilla Energy Drink has a sponsorship contract with Petr Yan. Per his social media profiles, Paribet also sponsors him.
