Watch: Petr Yan recreates his illegal knee strike to Aljamain Sterling during the UFC 267 open workouts
Petr Yan recreated his illegal knee to UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling during the UFC 267 open workout in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Wednesday.
Yan became the first titleholder in UFC history to lose their belt due to disqualification when he squared off against Sterling at UFC 259.
'No Mercy' was seen executing a similar illegal knee during practice ahead of his interim bantamweight championship bout against Cory Sandhagen on Fight Island. He shared a video of the same on Twitter.
"Open workout #UFC267," captioned Yan.
Watch Petr Yan take part in the UFC 267 open workouts in UAE below:
Open workout 😉 #UFC267 https://t.co/U5zPtVD8tm
Petr Yan was initially scheduled to face Aljamain Sterling in a rematch at UFC 267. However, Sterling pulled out of the encounter as he still hasn't fully recovered from neck surgery.
Yan has repeatedly called out the 'Funk Master' for faking an injury to avoid facing him. Now, he's gone one step further by recreating the illegal knee and mocking Sterling.
Petr Yan will take on Cory Sandhagen in the co-main event of UFC 267 this weekend
Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen are set to fight for the interim bantamweight title in the co-main event of UFC 267 on Saturday. The winner of the fight will take on Aljamain Sterling in a unification bout sometime in 2022.
Both 'No Mercy' and 'The Sandman' are coming off losses. The latter suffered a split decision defeat at the hands of the returning T.J. Dillashaw in July.
IT'S FIGHT WEEK 🏝
🇵🇱 Blachowicz 🆚 Teixeira 🇧🇷
🇷🇺 Yan 🆚 Sandhagen 🇺🇸
🇷🇺 Makhachev 🆚 Hooker 🇳🇿
🇨🇳 Li Jiangling 🆚 Chimaev 🇸🇪
#UFC267 | Saturday, Primetime | BT Sport 2 HD https://t.co/L4INGD11u3
Yan is the No.1 contender in the UFC bantamweight division, while Dillashaw and Sandhagen are ranked two and three, respectively. 'Killashaw' is currently recovering from a knee injury and has been ruled out for the rest of 2021.
Meanwhile, UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz will headline UFC 267. He will make his second title defense against Glover Teixeira at the Etihad Arena.
A lightweight bout featuring ranked contenders Islam Makhachev and Dan Hooker and a welterweight clash between Khamzat Chimaev and Li Jingliang are the other high-profile fights this weekend.