Current UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has taken aim at retired Irish superstar Conor McGregor. On September 6, “No Mercy” shared a clip of himself on the Russian late-night talk show Evening Urgant where he was interviewed by host Ivan Urgant. During the segment, Urgant put on headgear and Yan threw a kick at the host’s head.
The comedic bit ended with Urgant “knocked out” on the ground and No Mercy at his desk taking over the show.
In the caption of the Instagram post, Yan tagged “Notorious” and wrote: “you are next.” A fight between McGregor and Yan will likely never be scheduled as McGregor is a lot bigger than “No Mercy,” fighting at welterweight and lightweight. The lowest weight class McGregor has competed in is at featherweight which was years ago and since leaving it in 2016, the Irishman hasn’t looked back.
Should the 32-year-old fighter decide to return to the Octagon, it is unlikely that he will pursue a fight in a weight class lower than lightweight.
It’s not uncommon for fighters to “challenge” Notorious as he is the biggest name in the sport and will likely create headlines. See the video and the challenge below:
No Mercy Won the UFC Bantamweight Belt in July
After former bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo vacated his title in May, No Mercy found himself in the Octagon with a legend fighting for the championship.
He won the vacant strap in July when he defeated former featherweight king Jose Aldo by fifth-round TKO at UFC 251. He has been linked to No. 2 ranked Aljamain Sterling, however a fight has not been made official.
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Yan Is Undefeated Inside the Octagon & Made His Debut in 2018
In 2018, Yan made his debut in the UFC as an 8-1 prospect with his only loss coming via split decision in 2016.
No Mercy has won all seven of his bouts in the promotion. His first three victories were over Teruto Ishihara, Jin Soo Son and Douglas Silva de Andrade.
Yan took a step up in competition in 2019, taking on The Ultimate Fighter veteran and two-time flyweight title contender John Dodson and he won by unanimous decision. No Mercy went on to best Jimmie Rivera via unanimous decision, landing him a fight with Hall of Famer Urijah Faber.
Yan fought Faber in December 2019 during UFC 245 and he knocked out the legend in the third round. The victory was No Mercy’s biggest in his career and it lined him up for his eventual title clash with Jose Aldo.
Yan has a professional MMA record of 15-1.
McGregor Says He Is Retired From MMA
McGregor announced in June that he was retiring from MMA. Since his retirement, McGregor has been active on social media taking shots at his rivals and sharing his vacationing.
Although the Irishman says he is retired he is still in the official UFC rankings. He currently sits at No. 4 in the lightweight division and No. 10 on the male pound-for-pound list.
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UFC Champ to Conor McGregor: ‘You Are Next’