The co-main event of UFC 273 will feature a bantamweight fight between Aljamain Sterling (20-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) and Petr Yan (16-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC). UFC 273: Volkanovski vs. The Korean Zombie airs live from VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida this Saturday, April 9th. The main card will start with a fight time of 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT, with the ESPN/ESPN+ prelims beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT and the early prelims kicking off at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT.
How do these two stack up?
Sterling: 32 years old | 5’7” | 71” reach
Yan: 29 years old | 5’7” | 67” reach
What have these two done recently?
Sterling: W – Petr Yan (DQ) | W – Cory Sandhagen (SUB) | W – Pedro Munhoz (DEC)
Yan: W – Cory Sandhagen (DEC) | L – Aljamain Sterling (DQ) | W – José Aldo (TKO)
How did these two get here?
The wait is over.
Over a year removed from their first fight, Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan are rematching on Saturday night. The bad blood between these two has intensified, but now is the time to settle the score in the Octagon.
Sterling and Yan met at UFC 259, where a controversial ending marred a competitive outing. The ‘Funk Master’ was declared the winner and crowned champion after ‘No Mercy’ was disqualified for an illegal knee thrown to the head of a downed Sterling in the fourth round. Given the circumstances, an immediate rematch was scheduled for UFC 267 but took more than a year to get to. The Serra-Longo Fight Team product underwent ‘life-changing’ neck surgery and could not receive medical clearance for the original date, so an interim title was created in his absence. Yan defeated Cory Sandhagen via unanimous decision, setting up a unification against a now-healthy Sterling at UFC 272. That was also rescheduled, this time for unknown reasons, and we have finally arrived at the third (and final) date.
Why should you care?
An intriguing rematch + a heated rivalry = can’t miss entertainment, right?
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