UFC Bantamweight fighter Sean O’Malley challenged Petr Yan for a fight before Yan got his schedule to fight a rematch against Aljamain Sterling.
Yan has been eagerly waiting to fight Aljamain Sterling for the Bantamweight title. However, they have previously met at UFC 259 on March 6, which was a defeat for Yan as he threw an illegal knee on Sterling. Yan got disqualified on round four, and since then, he has been waiting for a rematch as Sterling also wanted the same.
But the rematch is not happening any time soon as the Funk Master opted to get neck surgery. That means Yan will have to have to wait until the late summer or fall to get the rematch. Hence, it is unlikely that No Mercy will fight anyone else in the meantime.
Now that the Bantamweight contender is sitting idle, Sean O’Malley offers him about before the rematch. “Hey @PetrYanUFC what are you doing in July brotha? Wana beat me up while you wait for your rematch?” O’Malley tweeted challenging a fight to Petr.
Are you high again Shaun? https://t.co/1dTG4DoA51
— Petr “No Mercy” Yan (@PetrYanUFC) April 14, 2021
Nevertheless, the challenge seemed absurd to Yan, and he slammed O’Malley. Yan tweeted, “Are you high again Shaun?” It seems the conversation ends here as the Russian is not interested in returning to the octagon.
Petr Yan vs Aljamain Sterling possible rematch date
UFC president Dana White has been working for the rematch since the second week of March. Both Yan and Sterling were positive about fighting one more time. However, the Funk Master stopped talking about the rematch date as he will go through neck surgery this week in April.
In this handout image provided by UFC, (R-L) Aljamain Sterling punches Petr Yan of Russia in their UFC bantamweight championship fight during the UFC 259 event at UFC APEX on March 06, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
According to Aljamain’s doctors, the Funk Master may take five months to heal the surgery. That means Sterling will be unable to return to the octagon until late September this year.
The possible rematch date could be later this fall or the end of this year. However, the date can get stretched to next year depending on Sterling’s health condition. Hence the Yan has nothing to do except hitting the training camp.
