After scoring an upset win at UFC 299 last month, Petr Yan found himself being approached by fellow bantamweight contender Marlon Vera.
After losing three straight fights, Petr Yan returned from a one-year hiatus at UFC 299 and defeated Song Yadong by three-round decision.
The same night, Marlon Vera was completely dominated in a title challenger match against 135-pound champion Sean O'Malley.
Marlon Vera first called for a fight with Yan.
After the disappointing performance, the Ecuadorian immediately began plotting his route back to the title, deciding that his first stop should be through the Russian.
“I was hoping to fight Yan in November,” Vera told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour after his loss to O'Malley at UFC 299. “I think it would be a great match that makes sense.”
Despite this, Yan went on to announce after his win at UFC 299 that he suffered a torn ACL, torn meniscus, and a groin injury that required surgery. However, “No Mercy” has undergone surgery and will likely be ready for a comeback in November.
At 135 pounds, the two are right next to each other in the bantamweight rankings, with Yan at No. 4 and Berra at No. 5.
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Vera's wish could come true as Petr Yan is “100 percent” losing his fight with the 31-year-old.
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“Do you want to fight Marlon Vera? Yes.” The Russian told KPSport: “I want to fight Marlon Vera? Yes. Of course I'll do it. I'll take you to a mixed martial arts school. ”
Despite going 1-3 in his past four fights, Yan is just one or two wins away from a chance at a bantamweight title shot. The current champion is Sean O'Malley, so Yan already has some history, which could work in his favor going forward.
'No Mercy' further compared the possibility of a match with Vera to a match with Song Yadong, claiming that just like with the Chinese contender, nothing would go as planned for Vera.
“You can see that Yadong showed his best boxing,'' Yang explained. “It's gone off the rails a little bit. Things don't go as planned for Vera either. That's 100 percent. We're going to go with what we've got so far and October or November will be the time for that fight. It’s a good time to do it.”
Bantamweight title photo and Sean O'Malley's future
The 31-year-old won't get a title shot with a win over Vera, but it would certainly get him closer.
Sean O'Malley will next fight Merab Dvalishvili, with the bout rumored to take place at the Sphere in Las Vegas in September. Following that, Cory Sandhagen is the likely next title contender, but he and Umar Nurmagomedov are locked in a feud with each other.
It all depends on whether Sandhagen fights Umar Nurmagomedov and how that fight goes, but if Petr Yan can get past Marlon Vera in October or November, the timing could work out perfectly for Petr Yan.
