
With the current Bantamweight Champion pulling out of the fight on UFC 256, the reports are indicating that the fight will happen on March 6 for UFC 259. Aljamain Sterling has been waiting for a long time for a title shot and the wait will not be that long. No other opponent has a better argument for a title shot than Sterling.
The bantamweight title bout between Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling has been rebooked for UFC 259, sources confirmed to @bokamotoESPN after a report by MMA Junkie. pic.twitter.com/Mcl8QbzZkR
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 7, 2021
Aljamain Sterling last fight ended quickly as he submitted Cory Sandhagen in under one round. He even has better wins on paper than the current champion. Petr Yan beat Jose Aldo for the vacant belt, meanwhile Sterling beat Sandhagen who was a clear top contender of the division who has a lot of wins. Although Jose Aldo is one of the greatest fighters ever, he still lacks the fights worthy for a title shot.
One of the most exciting and talent-stacked division is the Bantamweight Division. They have a similar case with the lightweight division where there is just more competition. Former Bantamweight Champion, TJ Dillashaw is also returning from his suspension and is getting into the mix.
According to some reports, Petr Yan will train at ATT(American Top Team). It will make his training much easier as it is located in the United States. There will be less hassle for the champ and the visa issues will be much easier since he will spend most of his time training.
Russian UFC Champ, Petr Yan decided to spend time in ATT for the next title fight against Sterling. It's not a permanent move to USA but just a experience.
Now, ATT have Alexey Oleinik, Andrei Arlovski, Maryna Moroz and Alexandr Shabily who can support Yan in his trip to US.
— Bruno Massami (Бруно Массами) (@BrMassami) January 6, 2021
The ATT is arguably the best team in MMA right now. They produce top contenders and have a lot of former champions. Colby Covington was an ATT prior to their dispute. Amanda Nunes the current WMMA GOAT is also on the team which gives Petr Yan a lot of sparring mates that are high-level. One of the best bantamweight outside of the UFC is also training which is Kyoji Horiguchi.
If the fight pulls through, we may be looking at a super-stacked card. If no injuries or cancelations of the fights, the fight card will feature three title fights. To top it all off, the main event is a Champion vs Champion fight. (Jan Blachowicz vs Israel Adesanya)