The former bantamweight champion Petr Yan made fun of the champion, Aljamain Sterling, for pulling out of the title rematch. Yan referred to Sterling as a ‘Sneaky Fox’ and accused him of running away from the fight.

Earlier, Petr Yan clashed against Sterling to defend his bantamweight gold at UFC 259. ‘No Mercy’ was completely dominating the fight. However, he landed a knee on ‘Funk Master’ while he was grounded. This is an illegal move in the UFC and it cost Yan his bantamweight gold strap as Sterling won the fight via DQ.

Later, both the bantamweight combatants were scheduled for a rematch at UFC 267. However, Sterling pulled out of the fight due to a neck injury.

The Russian fighter lost the opportunity to reclaim his gold strap, and this disgusted him. Recently ahead of his big fight, Yan appeared on an episode of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. He shared his views on Sterling’s situation and said, “Yeah, of course, I wanted to regain my belt in a rematch with Sterling, but as we all know, he ran away like a sneaky fox. Sterling is chicken bro.”

He added, “I don’t want to talk about him. Yeah, nothing personal. It’s just his decision to make this surgery right now. I don’t know why he hadn’t done it earlier or maybe later in his career, but now he’s like the whole division in a mess. And yeah, that’s it.”

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However, now the Russian former champion is getting ready for a big opportunity. And here’s everything you need to know about it.

Petr Yan for the UFC Interim Bantamweight Title

After Sterling’s withdrawal from the title rematch, the promotion set up an interim bantamweight title bout. Now Petr Yan will take on the #3 fighter on the bantamweight roster Cory Sandhagen inside the octagon at UFC 267. The light heavyweight title fight will headline the pay-per-view.

This intriguing interim title bout will serve as the co-main event on 30th October in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Both the bantamweight combatants are coming off of a loss in their previous respective bouts.

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This is an important fight for both the men, as the winner will get to unify their interim title against Aljamain Sterling next. It is going to be a striking contest between some of the best fighters on the roster. Hence, it will serve as a treat for the fight fans.

What do you make out of Yan’s words? Who do you think will win the interim title bout? Let us know in the comments below.