MOSCOW, April 10, Oleg Bogatov. Russian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Petr Yan could not expect that the American Aljamain Sterling in the rematch for the title of champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in the bantamweight division would look completely different than in their first fight, said Russian MMA fighter Alexander Shlemenko. The fight took place on the 273rd number promotion tournament in Jacksonville (Florida, USA) and ended with Sterling's victory by a split decision. This was the second confrontation between the fighters. In the first meeting, held in March 2021, Yan lost the title after being disqualified for an illegal knee to the opponent's head. «Everyone is sure that after four rounds the score is exactly 2-2, the second and third took Sterling, and the fourth and fifth Yan. And the first round was decisive. If you look at it, it is very difficult to evaluate this fight by it. Because there were no serious movements in it, Petya did reconnaissance, he often starts fights like that, looking at the opponent. And, maybe, on the judges were impressed by the last blow in the first round, delivered by Sterling. It was not clean, through the block, but it could impress. The fight was close, very equal, and it’s hard to evaluate such ones, «said Shlemenko. «And the decision of the judges was, after all, not unanimous. Of course, I was rooting for Petya and wanted him to win. For me, he remained the winner in the fight, but the judges decided differently. Sterling did the right thing. In the first fight, he realized that he would not see the title and he was given a chance. He took a year to honor all mistakes and prepare well. Petya was well prepared, as always. But I don't think he expected Sterling to be any different than he was in the first fight. Maybe we all relaxed Petya too, because for us he was a clear favorite. Nobody doubted victory. It seems to me that, unfortunately, we also contributed and brought down Petya's mood a little,» Shlemenko added.
