It’s been a while since we last saw Yair Rodriguez and Zabit Magomedsharipov inside the Octagon. While the Russian boxer has taken to social media on numerous occasions, Yair has not made his reasons for opting-out of a possible #1 contender’s match against Zabit public, yet.
UFC President Dana White answered several media questions and looked clueless about the real reason behind Yair’s absence from the UFC’s Octagon.
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“I don’t think he is gonna fight soon. We didn’t announce it, I don’t know why we didn’t. It’s actually none of my business. When it comes out, it will come out.
“It’s none of our business, it’s none of theUFC’s business. When they figure out they will let us know,” White said while concluding the post-match press conference.
“Did he? No! That would be my business,” said White while denying of any reports of Yair declining to fight Zabit.
Both fighters were initially slated to take on each other with the winner set to take on the UFC’s featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski.
However, the hugely anticipated bout was pulled off on numerous occasions. Many fight fans criticized Yair for ducking the fight. However, White paid no heed to any such claims.
When will Yair Rodriguez return?
Yair Rodriguez is fresh off a unanimous decision win over MMA veteran Jeremy Stephens. Additionally, with a spectacular KO win over the Korean Zombie, Rodriguez is one win away from landing a title opportunity.
The Mexican fighter has come a long way following a TKO loss over Frankie Edgar back in May 2017. However, Yair is just 28 years old and has an entire career ahead of him. With notable wins over the likes of Dan Hooker, BJ Penn, Jeremy Stephens, and Chan Sung Jung, ‘El Pantera’ is destined for glory in the featherweight division.
It seems like Brian Ortega might be up next for the UFC strap with an incredible performance over the Korean Zombie recently. In any situation, if Zabit finds a new opponent, Yair Rodriguez could find himself in a precarious situation.
Be that as it may, according to Dana White, it will be a while before we see the Mexican back inside the ring.
