Petr Yan on Aljamain Sterling: ‘I’m training to break him and destroy him’ at UFC 259

Petr Yan isn’t satisfied with just winning the UFC bantamweight title. In fact, he plans on holding the title for a long, long time, while also hoping to mix things up a bit.

In his first title defense, Yan will take on Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259. The event takes place March 6 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas in one of three world title fights.

The matchup between Yan and Sterling was originally set to take place at UFC 256 in December before the champion was forced to withdraw for a number of reasons due to COVID-19 restrictions and travel issues. Ahead of the rebooked title bout, “No Mercy” made his way to the United States in January to train at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Fla.

“Change of scenery is good,” Yan told MMA Fighting while appearing on What the Heck. “It’s good to get ready here and [then] kick some ass after.”

In what he deemed to MMA Fighting as his toughest test at 135 pounds, Yan captured the vacant championship with a fifth-round TKO win over former featherweight titleholder Jose Aldo at UFC 251. As special of an accomplishment as that was for the 27-year-old, he has already put it behind him.

“At the time, I really enjoyed the moment defeating a legend and a killer in Jose Aldo,” Yan said. “But right now, I’m not really thinking about it. Right now my focus is on Sterling and how to destroy this man.

“Being champion is a very big responsibility, but just winning the belt was not my ultimate goal. My goal right now is to defend this title multiple times and I’m completely focused on that. Aljamain is just the next step in achieving my goal.”