Petr Yan’s road back to the Octagon just took a detour through a hospital room, and it wasn’t a short one. The reigning UFC bantamweight champion revealed that he underwent major lumbar surgery that kept him under anesthesia for nine hours.

In a sport where timing is everything, that detail alone landed with weight. Yan is coming off the table after a serious procedure, at the exact moment his division is buzzing with contenders circling his throne. So the question naturally follows: how does this change the title picture?

The champion shared the news via Instagram, posting an update from his hospital bed, IV line in his arm, and a tray of hospital food beside him. Alongside the video came a blunt update that left little room for speculation.

“I was under anesthesia for 9 hours,” Yan wrote. “I had surgery on my lower back yesterday. A couple of months and I’ll be back in action.”

The video also contained a message translated by the UFC’s Russian interpreter, Sergey Nargorny, telling fans not to count him out. “Don’t lose me,” Yan said. “I’m in rehab for a few months.”

From a medical standpoint, lumbar surgery is no joke. Most procedures of that nature require at least four to six weeks before even light activity is recommended, and that’s before you factor in the demands of elite MMA training. Petr Yan didn’t specify the exact nature of the surgery, but nine hours under anesthesia suggests something extensive.

The fact that he’s already talking in terms of months, not years, is encouraging, but it also explains why the UFC can’t simply rush the division forward without him. ‘No Mercy’ isn’t just any champion. He reclaimed the bantamweight title at UFC 323 with one of the most impressive wins of his career.

Entering the fight, many believed Merab Dvalishvili was on the verge of cementing himself as the greatest bantamweight of all time. He was chasing a fourth title defense in a single calendar year. Instead, Yan flipped the script and outclassed Dvalishvili over five rounds, winning a clear unanimous decision and snapping the Georgian’s historic run.

Dvalishvili has already made it clear he wants an immediate rematch, and given his dominance before the loss, that request carries weight. Sean O’Malley, meanwhile, revived his title hopes at UFC 324 by edging Song Yadong in a competitive bout. He also holds a controversial win over Yan from 2022, a result that still sparks debate among fans.

And on the same UFC 324 card, Umar Nurmagomedov quietly dismantled former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo, adding another name to the growing list of contenders. Yet, according to Daniel Cormier, there’s only one name that makes sense for the champion’s next challenge!

Daniel Cormier backs Petr Yan vs Merab Dvalishvili over unimpressive UFC 324 bantamweights

Instead of clearing the fog at bantamweight, UFC 324 may have actually reinforced an old conclusion. Daniel Cormier watched the same fights as everyone else, but he didn’t come away believing a new title challenger had announced himself. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former champion acknowledged Sean O’Malley’s bounce-back win over Song Yadong, yet stopped well short of calling it a title shot-clinching performance.

Cormier credited O’Malley’s mindset first. “O’Malley was more mature all week leading to this, and I believe that his post-fight speech showed the maturity,” he said, noting how hard wins are to come by at the elite level. That growth mattered. But when it came to what the UFC usually looks for in a title eliminator, Cormier wasn’t convinced.

The same logic applied to Umar Nurmagomedov. Despite dominating former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo over three rounds, Cormier didn’t believe the Dagestani had forced the UFC’s hand either.

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That led Cormier back to the most familiar answer of all as he stated, “So I believe while Petr Yan dominated Merab Dvalishvili last time, but after watching Umar tonight and after watching Sean O’Malley, I believe that we’re going to end up with Merab and Petr Yan again for a third time, just because I don’t think those guys separated themselves enough.”

While Petr Yan recovers, the crown might stay frozen in place. And when ‘No Mercy’ finally steps back into the Octagon, it will be an unfinished storyline waiting for him, but not the one he prefers.