UFC Las Vegas preview: Petr Yan
Tomorrow night at the UFC Las Vegas headline, we’ll see a big time match in the bantamweight division. Former champion Petr Jan (16-4) will play tough Merab Dvalishvili (15-4).
We last saw Yan back in October at UFC 280 when he faced Sean O’Malley. Almost everyone outside of a couple of judges thought Yan had won the fight. However, two judges fought Suga Shun and Yan suffered his second consecutive defeat.
Prior to that, he lost to Dvalishvili’s teammate Aljamain Sterling in a rematch for the bantamweight title. Sure, Yan lost two fights in a row, but he was still one of the best players in the world. Dvalishvili is looking to show that he belongs in that conversation, too.
It was a really rough start for Dvalishvili in the UFC. Two straight losses including finishing him, however, he has kept going and has now won eight straight fights. His last fight came this past August against Jose Aldo where he scored the biggest win of his career.
Predict UFC Las Vegas
Listen, we know exactly what Dvishvili is going to try to do tomorrow night. He’ll be heavy with the pressure and he’ll try a stifling wrestling attack that will win him a decision. He will not strike with Peter Yan.
If he tries to strike with Peter Yan, I think Dvalishvili can easily finish tomorrow night. Dvalishvili hits well and has insane speed, but he’s a quick hitter and we’ve seen him swing around inside the octagon. The former UFC champ just needs to hold his own in wrestling and has enough amazing exchanges to get his offense off the ground.
I think in the middle rounds, Yan will have some great success with his boxing combinations. Dvalishvili won’t go down so easily, but I’ve got Petr Yan on this one.
Prediction: Petr Yan by TKO – Round 3
