In mixed martial arts (MMA), there is a maxim that is generally true: it is the sport in which the favorite is the least favorite of all sports. That is to say that someone who, a priori, has a lot of difficulty, can arrive and surprise with a … powerful hand, with a submission after an error or, directly, with a completely dominant performance. This is Petr Yan’s last case since The Russian became UFC bantamweight champion, knocking out Merab Dvalishvili by unanimous decision last Saturday at UFC 323.
Petr Yan had everything against him: he came from very far away and was clearly not the favorite to win the race. But in MMA, the impossible takes just a little longer. The fight was a complete turnaround from the duo’s first duel in March 2023, in which Dvalishvili displayed a historically dominant performance that was a demoralizing defeat for Yan.
However, last Saturday, Yan kept his promise to be the one to take the initiative and demonstrated it by dropping one bomb after another throughout the fight. Yan first surprised Dvalishvili with an explosive combo in the first round, and in the third he delivered a stunning kick to the ribs. He was very damaging at all times, seeing how he managed to melt the Georgian champion during the fight, which is unusual for him.
“I always knew I had to push my initiative. I had to make sure I hurt him. There was no specific moment. This is your land. I took a 30 hour flight to get here. I knew that to get the belt I had to make sure I left nothing undone, without a doubt“. Yan won the judges’ scores 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47. An indisputable victory, which prevented Dvalishvili from becoming the first fighter in UFC history to defend his belt four times in the same calendar year.
Faced with this very difficult situation, that of losing the UFC belt against all odds, Ilia Topuria, who could not be present in Las Vegas with Merab Dvalishvili, conveyed her maximum support with a moving message: “Brother, life is full of falls and unexpected turns, but you will always continue to be the best. You will come back and you will do it much stronger“.
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