Whoever Petr Yan fights next, he has no shortage of options.
At the forefront for Yan are the yet-to-be-booked rematch with UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling and rising star Sean O’Malley, the latter of whom sparked a heated exchange of words on social media when he tweeted that it his dream to defeat Yan in the former titleholder’s native Russia.
I want to beat up Peter in Russia. This is my dream.
— Sean O'Malley (@SugaSeanMMA) June 17, 2021
Yan did not take kindly to this, firing back shortly after and also using the opportunity to take a shot at his rival Sterling.
I will put you to sleep so you can keep dreaming curly boy https://t.co/BwH8WxzY2c
— Petr “No Mercy” Yan (@PetrYanUFC) June 18, 2021
Enter top 3 before even mentioning my name poodle. I got unfinished business with fakemaster now
— Petr “No Mercy” Yan (@PetrYanUFC) June 18, 2021
“I will put you to sleep so you can keep dreaming curly boy,” Yan wrote, adding, “Enter top-3 before even mentioning my name, poodle. I got unfinished business with ‘fakemaster’ now.”
That last line was a clear reference to Sterling, nicknamed “Funkmaster.” Yan lost the bantamweight title to Sterling in controversial fashion at UFC 259 when Yan was disqualified for landing an illegal knee to a grounded opponent. Two of the three judges scoring the fight had it 29-28 Yan heading into the fateful fourth round, but that was a moot point as the disqualification win made Sterling the new champion at 135 pounds.
As he has several times since the incident, Sterling told Yan to pay attention to the rules, drawing a profane response from Yan that Sterling answered in kind.
Keep your focus on the Unified Rules Book, before you even mention any opponents. https://t.co/3PmYuvDMfV
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) June 18, 2021
Try to win the fight without crawling on your knees like a bitch in front of me https://t.co/Sm0FuOT4W3
— Petr “No Mercy” Yan (@PetrYanUFC) June 18, 2021
LOL! Dumbass, my resume speaks for itself. Yours on the other hand is Aldo on a losing streak, beating NO ONE in the Top 5, and then cheating in a title fight against your first Top 5 opponent. ♂️
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) June 18, 2021
You really are some piece of shit human being. https://t.co/4dc3xw0J3D
“Try to win the fight without crawling on your knees like a bitch in front of me,” Yan wrote.
“LOL! Dumbass, my resume speaks for itself,” Sterling wrote. “Yours on the other hand is Aldo on a losing streak, beating NO ONE in the top-5, and then cheating in a title fight against your first top-5 opponent. You really are some piece of s*it human being.”
O’Malley later joined in on the fun, taking a crack at Yan’s height.
You go up to my belly button. https://t.co/wjDZDrqMUa
— Sean O'Malley (@SugaSeanMMA) June 18, 2021
Poll
Which fight would you like to see next for Petr Yan?
This poll is closed
-
59%
Aljamain Sterling
-
39%
Sean O’Malley
-
1%
Other (leave comment below)