Petr Yan feels like he’s nearing the chance to fight for the bantamweight belt once again. With some high-profile wins in his last couple of outings, ‘No Mercy’ called out Umar Nurmagomedov for a supposed title eliminator. And while this did surprise the 18-1 Dagestan native, he decided to accept the offer. However, Yan believes that Khabib Nurmagomedov could be muddled about taking this fight, according to Umar’s response. Just like we said, Umar Nurmagomedov wasn’t expecting a callout from Petr Yan. The former title challenger took to social media and wrote, “Pleasantly surprised by the challenge forward.” 

When it came to accepting the fight, ‘No Mercy’ was expecting the bout to headline the UFC event in Baku. However, the Dagestani juggernaut claimed that he would be ready to come again in “Abu Dhabi – October.” That response did not sit well with Petr Yan, who believes that maybe Umar Nurmagomedov doesn’t want anything to do with him in a 5-round fight. But guess what? The 37-year-old Russian veteran isn’t dragging his ‘ducking’ claim any further because he just wants to fight and get his title shot as soon as he can.

If Umar doesn’t agree to fight him, Yan has asked Dana White to find him another opponent instead, who deserves to fight for a title shot. “Umar is not ready,” Petr Yan wrote in his Instagram stories. “I hope there will be a worthy challenge for June – Baku or July – Abu Dhabi.” With Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley fighting for the belt at UFC 316, maybe Dana White could opt for Yan to take on anyone other than Umar Nurmagomedov to find the next title contender.

Well, Yan and Nurmagomedov have been on each other’s radar for years now. In 2021, the younger bantamweight appeared to question the former champion’s claim in a cryptic tweet when Yan said the bantamweight division was his yard to rule. Meanwhile, ‘No Mercy’ has another contender calling him out, who’s also a former champion.

Henry Cejudo wants Petr Yan if he doesn’t get the rematch against Song Yadong

Henry Cejudo‘s last fight at UFC Seattle went wrong in more ways than once. Firstly, his opponent, Song Yadong, caught him in the groin with an illegal blow, but the Chinese star didn’t get reprimanded for it. Then again, he lost the fight after an eye poke rendered him unable to continue. Now, Cejudo is on the hunt to fight Yadong once again and get revenge for his loss. However, if Dana White decides to go down another route, ‘Triple C’ suggests he sets him up for a fight against Petr Yan.

“[I would love to fight] Petr Yan, man. I would love to run it back if Dana – you know, obviously this is Dana’s decision, dude. And I know when he says certain s–t, like he lays on it,” Henry Cejudo stated in the ‘Pound 4 Pound’ podcast over a month ago. “But if we can’t get Song, I would love to fight Petr Yan, dude. Petr Yan’s looking to fight in May. If the UFC is willing to give me that, I’ll take it.”

Well, Dana White is already opposed to the idea of a rematch between Cejudo and Yadong. So, it remains to be seen what Petr Yan’s next fight looks like and if Umar Nurmagomedov reacts to his recent comments. Do you think this is the fight to make? Let us know in the comments down below.