MMA Knockout

‘Maybe We’ll Do It Next,’ - Petr Yan Catches Top UFC Contender’s Attention

#4 UFC Bantamweight Cory Sandhagen *respectfully* wants another crack at Petr Yan.

Christopher De Santiago

Craig Kidwell-Imagn Images

Merab Dvalishvili isn't the only fighter who's interested in rematching Petr Yan...

The former UFC Bantamweight Champion put together back-to-back wins at UFC Macau last weekend after Yan (18-5) won all five rounds on the scorecards to end Deiveson Figueiredo's mean streak in the bantamweight division.

UFC Champ Merab Dvalishvili Calls For Rematch With Former Foe: 'Let's Go Again'

Cory Sandhagen Congratulates Former Foe Petr Yan

Yan's certainly got options - if not a title shot next, then perhaps a fight against the next best the world has to offer. Someone the Russian's seen before, top contender Cory Sandhagen (17-5) expressed his interest in a potential rematch - after all, they're right next to each other in the rankings at #3 and #4.

"Congrats to Yan. He looked really great," Sandhagen said of his former foe on his YouTube channel. "Figgy [Figueiredo] is a really good matchup for him to look super good in specifically."

The result didn't surprise Sandhagen one bit, going five rounds with Yan himself in 2021 for the interim UFC Bantamweight Championship, losing by unanimous decision in what was a competitive and super technical fight at UFC 267.

Wanting to avenge his only title fight loss, Sandhagen says he's actually a "big fan" of Yan's fighting style and technical striking, which doesn't leave too many openings for opponents to land.

Sandhagen: "I Still Want To Get That One Back..."

Yan and Sandhagen are considered among the best tacticians in the sport today, and "Sandman" is more than open to a rematch after evolving his game for the last three years.

"Maybe we'll do it next," Sandhagen continued. "I don't really know what the division's going on. I haven't really heard too much. I was hoping to hear probably sometime next week about the direction that [UFC is] gonna go in 'cause I know that they were waiting on this fight to play out."

"Congrats to Yan. I still want get that one back. We'll see if it'll be next or not."

Cory Sandhagen, 32, went on a three-fight win streak following his loss to Petr Yan, and the only other man he's lost to since then was the undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov in his last fight in August.

'Maybe We’ll Do It Next,’ - Petr Yan Catches Top UFC Contender’s Attention
UFC's Cory Sandhagen. / Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Read More UFC & MMA News


Stick with MMA Knockout for more FREE coverage of the UFC, MMA, Boxing, WWE, and AEW.

Follow MMA Knockout on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Published
Christopher De Santiago
CHRISTOPHER DE SANTIAGO

Christopher De Santiago is a 22 year-old journalist from Gainesville, Texas with years of experience covering MMA.

Home/News