Petr Yan packs some serious power at bantamweight.
Yan faced UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber on the main card opener of UFC 245 in December in a fight that was critical in proving himself as a top player at 135 pounds.
Yan stalked Faber and pressured “The California Kid” right off the bat. He took his time, trying to find his range with faints and fakes, forcing Faber to constantly move side-to-side to evade. Yan opened up at the end of Round 1, tagging Faber with an uppercut then a short right hand.
In Round 2, Faber started out with another step-in knee, but Yan ate it with no issues. He continued to press Faber, pushing him back with a perfect one-two combination that dropped the former WEC champ. Faber showed good survival instincts, but was immediately dropped again with a big elbow that had him bloodied up, swollen and in all sorts of trouble.
Yan was finally able to put the ever-so-tough Faber away in Round 3, blasting him with a massive head kick for his sixth consecutive UFC win.
Yan (14-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) returns at UFC 251 on July 11 when he meets Jose Aldo (28-6 MMA, 10-5 UFC) for the vacant bantamweight title in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
Before he faces Aldo, though, relive Yan’s finish over Faber in the video above.
