Ivan OrekhovCorrespondent SportAll materialsOn the night of April 10, Moscow time, the 273rd numbered tournament of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will be held, which will be decorated with a rematch of Peter Yan against Aljamain Sterling, as well as performances by undefeated Khamzat Chimaev and mixed martial arts veteran Alexei Oleinik. We will talk about the main fights of the show in American Jacksonville in our traditional announcement. Jan — Sterling II Too much has been said about this enmity. Therefore, briefly: Petr Yan, who became the interim champion of the promotion in October 2021 thanks to a gorgeous victory over Corey Sandhagen, will have to share the octagon with the absolute league champion Aljamain Sterling. And this confrontation will be the second for the fighters: in March 2021, Yang, who made the first defense, confidently defeated the American, but when there was a little more than a round left until the end of the fight, the Siberian incorrectly assessed the situation and delivered a forbidden knee blow to the opponent’s head, who was in a “grounded” position . Aljamain either did not want to continue the fight, or could not. As a result, Peter was disqualified, and Sterling, accused by fans of «clownery», became the new UFC bantamweight champion.In a conversation with Yang, he noted that he really wants to put an end to the protracted confrontation with the hated Aljo. According to No Mercy, he wants to do it convincingly, without bringing the fight to a decision of the judges:
"I did not think about whether my story with Sterling would end on the weekend, as well as about the trilogy. Now focused on the upcoming fight. I hope it ends on Saturday. An early victory would put an end to the confrontation with him".
Also, before the revenge, the Russian chose his next opponent. Yes, yes, if he wins UFC 273, Ian would like to defend his belt against former league champion T.J. Dillashaw. The American in 2019 was caught doping, left the belt and was subsequently disqualified for two years. Dillashaw came back last summer and took the lead with a win over Corey Sandhagen.
"I would love to fight Dillashaw next, I always said that. For me, this is an interesting fight that should take place", — this is how Ian reacts to the question of the biggest name in the division.
Odds: experts have absolutely no faith in Sterling. 1.2 for No Mercy versus 6.2 for a US athlete.