The UFC Bantamweight division has a new king at UFC 251. Russian fighter Petr Yan made history by becoming the first competitor to win a championship at the Yas Fight Island. ‘No Mercy’ lived up to his nickname and left Aldo in a mess as blood streamed down his face and onto the canvas. He also managed to deprive Aldo of joining an exclusive club of fighters to win belts in two different divisions.
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The fight started with both competitors going toe-to-toe for the first three rounds. When ‘Junior’ locked in a punch, ‘No Mercy’ hit back with punch combinations to keep the Featherweight legend honest. However, the champion in waiting was not to be denied. He stayed in the fight and did not wilt as he entered the 16th minute for the first time in his UFC career.
Petr Yan dominated as the fight progressed
As Yan grew into the fight, he bettered his personal best record for significant strikes. This came as the Brazilian appeared to get a split second slower. But, he too bettered his personal best in strikes. ‘No Mercy’ absorbed the punishment and landed a takedown deep into the 4th. He had the contender beat before the round ended to provide him some respite.
RUSSIA HAS A NEW CHAMPION!
🏆 @PetrYanUFC stops Aldo in the fifth!#UFC251 | #InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/uITcE8ijba
— UFC (@ufc) July 12, 2020
As the final round began, the 27-year-old Russian launched a vicious right hand clean in his opponent’s face. The force of the blow saw Aldo stagger into the cage before another shot took him down. The former Featherweight Champion displayed heart as he desperately tried to prevent the Russian from mounting him for a ground and pound.
THE SOUND OF THESE SHOTS 😰 #UFC251 pic.twitter.com/Wrv2yiNKqY
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 12, 2020
However, he ate hard elbows and fists, the sounds of which reverberated across the Flash Forum as blood oozed out onto the canvas. ‘Junior’ kept doing the bare minimum to convince the referee that he had the slimmest of chances to break free. However, in the eyes of the commentators, fans, and ‘No Mercy’ himself all Aldo did was delay the inevitable at a great personal cost.
Finally, with 96 seconds of the 25 left on the clock, the referee waved off the fight to hand ‘No Mercy’ a TKO win. As a result, Yan became a champion for the 2nd time in his career.
Yan will have a bunch of contenders gunning for him but for now, he can savor the moment where he became a champion. What did you make of the ‘No Mercy’s brutal win at UFC 251 that saw him tie the longest win streak in Bantamweight history?
