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#4. Former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan vs. winner of Rob Font vs. Marlon Vera
Former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan is in an interesting predicament following his loss to Aljamain Sterling. He lost a close split-decision to the reigning champion in a title unification bout.
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It was a rematch of their 2021 encounter, which ended with an illegal knee that resulted in Yan being disqualified. Now that ‘Funk Master’ has defeated ‘No Mercy’ twice, it’ll be a tough road back to a trilogy bout.
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It’s also important to note that Yan has already defeated the No.3 and No.4 ranked bantamweights. He finished Jose Aldo in 2020 to win the vacant bantamweight championship. In 2021, ‘No Mercy’ captured gold again, when he earned a unanimous decision win over Cory Sandhagen to become interim champion.
That leaves No.5 ranked bantamweight Rob Font as a bantamweight he hasn’t fought yet. Font is scheduled to fight Marlon Vera on the Fight Night card on April 30. Based on the rankings, the winner would be a great opponent for the former champion.
#3. Khamzat Chimaev vs. former interim UFC welterweight champion Colby Covington
UFC 273 saw Khamzat Chimaev become a star for the promotion. There was a lot of hype surrounding Chimaev’s ascension up the welterweight rankings. He was the No.11 ranked welterweight fighting the No.2 ranked welterweight in only his fifth bout in the promotion. Chimaev now sits at No.3 in the welterweight division.
‘The Wolf’ proved that he wasn’t another hype train that would be derailed when the competition improved. His bout with Gilbert Burns lived up to the hype and earned him Fight of the Night. It was Chimaev's biggest win and sets him up for a title eliminator bout next.
Prior to the event, Dana White mentioned that if Chimaev defeated Burns, Colby Covington would be the next opponent. White added that the promotion are working on another event on ABC and wants to add a massive headliner.
With ‘The Wolf’s popularity skyrocketing and ‘Chaos’ being the most polarizing fighter in MMA, the bout could generate plenty of interest. Their excellent cardio and wrestling could make for another Fight of the Night for Chimaev.
