Petr Yan surpasses Deiveson Figueiredo in the fight against former champions

Had Saturday’s UFC main event between Petr Yan and Deiveson Figueiredo taken place four years ago, it would have been a champion-versus-champion superfight.

Yan and Figueiredo won UFC titles within a week of each other in July 2020, Yan at bantamweight and Figueiredo 10 pounds lighter at flyweight. But both were quickly dethroned and have been trying to climb back to that mountaintop ever since. Yan took a big step in that direction with a unanimous decision victory at a UFC Fight Night matinee in Macau, China.

Yan (18-5) was taken down by Figueiredo (24-4-1) in the opening 30 seconds of the fight, but he quickly reversed position and delivered damage from the top. Yan maintained control for the rest of the fight, winning every round on the judges’ scorecards (50-45, 50-45, 50-45), ending the 36-year-old Figueiredo’s four-fight winning streak.

Yan, who is 31 and from Russia, landed more than twice the significant strikes of Figueiredo (121-53) and was far more accurate, especially with leading uppercuts that snapped his opponent’s head back on several occasions. But Figueiredo, a two-time champion, remained dangerous throughout, especially during a flurry late in Round 4 that briefly put Yan on the back foot.

Yan quickly got back into the rhythm and cruised to his second win in a row. Afterwards he called the master Merab Dvalishvili.

“Before my fight, Merab Deiveson was talking Figueiredo (as his) No. 1 challenger who deserves a title fight,” Yan said. “I’ll say, ‘Merab, what do you say now that I beat the No. 1 contender in my division?’ I want to play a match with Merab.

Yan is no. 5 in ESPN’s bantamweight rankings, Figueiredo no. 7.

The main event was one of two matches pitting top-10 fighters against each other.

In the strawweight co-main event, Yan Xiaonan, no. 4 in the division and ranked 10th in the women’s pound-for-pound rankings, no. 10 Tabatha Ricci in three rounds and won a clear unanimous decision (30-27) 30-27, 30-27).

Yan (19-4, 1 NC) got back on track after losing to champion Zhang Weili in a title challenge in April. She was one step ahead of Ricci (11-3) throughout, starting with a 16-0 edge in significant strikes in Round 1 en route to a 78-15 advantage for the bout.

After the match, Yan pointed at Zhang in the crowd and shouted, “Weili, I want a rematch!”

Another ESPN-ranked fighter was in action: Volkan Oezdemir (20-8), the No. 8. He lost a decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-27) to Carlos Ulberg (11-1), who has won seven in a row.

Earlier, strawweight Feng Xiaocan was taken from the Octagon on a stretcher and transported to a hospital after a head-kick knockout by Shi Ming in the 115-pound final of the Road to UFC tournament. The broadcast later updated Feng’s status, saying she did not suffer any fractures or neck injuries, but remained hospitalized.