Chael Sonnen details why Petr Yan vs. Aljamain Sterling 2 isn't a good indicator of the Russian's deadly ground game
Chael Sonnen has suggested that Petr Yan's performance in his rematch against Aljamain Sterling wasn't an appropriate gauge of the Russian's grappling prowess. Sonnen indicated that Yan didn't efficiently utilize his wrestling and overall grappling skills in that fight, leading many to underestimate his grappling.
Former UFC bantamweight champion Yan is scheduled to face fellow KO artist 'Sugar' Sean O'Malley in a three-round bantamweight bout at UFC 280 on October 22. In an edition of Beyond the Fight, Sonnen acknowledged that O'Malley could perhaps learn from the Yan-Sterling rematch and follow Sterling's blueprint to out-grapple Yan.
Chael Sonnen added, however, that Petr Yan is a brilliant anti-wrestler and mustn't be judged solely based on his underwhelming grappling showcase in the Aljamain Sterling rematch. Furthermore, Sonnen notably harked back to Yan's impressive grappling in his wins over MMA legends Urijah Faber and Jose Aldo. Praising Yan's underrated grappling prowess, 'The Bad Guy' stated:
"Yan can get you to the ground, and Yan could do good work when he gets there. And if your only perception of Yan and his ability to wrestle, to anti-wrestle, as well as to grapple once he gets to the ground is his last fight with Sterling; you've got a false interpretation. You really do."
"It was as though the wrestling switch got turned off on Petr Yan in that last fight. I've never seen him like that. I don't want to discredit 'Aljo.' I don't want to discredit Yan either. I just want to dismiss it."
Watch Sonnen discuss the topic at 4:58 in the video below:
Daniel Cormier on the stark contrast in the two fights between Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling
While Petr Yan looks to earn another title shot by beating Sean O'Malley, UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is set to defend his title against T.J. Dillashaw. Both fights are scheduled to transpire at UFC 280. Speaking of which, MMA legend Daniel Cormier recently addressed Sterling's incredible redemption story over the course of his pair of fights against Yan.
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Aljamain Sterling does enough to score a split decision victory at #UFC273 🏆 https://t.co/0E20N2ljXh
On ESPN MMA's DC & RC Show, Daniel Cormier recalled that in their first fight back in March 2021, Aljamain Sterling was dominated by Petr Yan on the feet and the ground before Yan was disqualified due to an illegal knee. That said, 'DC' pointed out that Sterling redeemed himself by dominantly out-grappling Yan and beating him via split decision in their rematch in April of this year. Cormier said:
"Aljamain Sterling got embarrassed [in the first fight]. He got taken down, he was getting beat, looked like he was about to get finished. He flipped that result in a very short period of time."
Watch the DC & RC Show episode below: