Petr Yan’s next contender will be decided at UFC 324 – MMASucka

Reigning bantamweight champion Petr Yan will likely know who his next contender will be after UFC 324. Realistically, there are two contenders, both fighting at UFC324 this weekend in Las Vegas.

While the first event of the Paramount Plus era will be headlined by Paddy Pimblett and Justin Gaethje, the new co-main event will feature Sean O’Malley and Song Yadong. The preliminaries will see Umar Nurmagomedov battle Deiveson Figueiredo and there’s a good chance Petr Yan will face one of the two men featured in those fights.

Petr Yan vs. Sean O’Malley – The Rematch

If Sean O’Malley, the former 135-pound champion, defeats Yadong, which is a tough task in itself, he could set up a rematch with the champion.

The two men met for the first time in three rounds in 2022 in an instant classic. In a highly contentious battle, Suga came away with his hand raised via split decision. He would win the belt in his next match.

O’Malley, besides Yan, was the biggest winner after UFC 323. The American has two losses against Merab Dvalishvili, so if the Georgian won last year, O’Malley would not be close to the title picture. Since Yan won in tremendous fashion, O’Malley can sell the storyline that he already has a victory over the champion.

That is…if he beats Yadong at UFC 324.

Petr Yan vs. Umar Nurmagomedov – All Russian affairs

The other potential opponent for Petr Yan after UFC 324 is an all-Russian affair against Umar Nurmagomedov.

Former title challenger Nurmagomedov takes on former flyweight champion Figueiredo in a fight where he is a heavy favorite. Nurmagomedov narrowly missed out on winning bantamweight gold when he was defeated by Dvalishvili in January last year, suffering his first career loss. He bounced back by improving Mario Bautista’s long winning streak last October, but didn’t do enough to get a rematch with the Georgian.

If Nurmagomedov does what the odds suggest, there’s a good chance we’ll see him there alongside Petr Yan next.

It all depends on who delivers the better performance. If O’Malley narrowly outpaces Yadong and Nurmagomedov finishes Figueiredo, it will be an all-Russian matchup. If the opposite happens, expect a rematch.

Check out our full UFC 324 recap podcast here: