At UFC 235, Pedro Munhoz went to war with Cody Garbrandt. In a ‘Fight of the Night’ performance, Munhoz and the former champion Garbrandt traded brutal hooks for the final minute of the first round and with 13 seconds remaining, Munhoz delivered a wicked right hand that dropped ‘No Love’ and allowed the Brazilian to finish the Team Alpha Male fighter, who moves to 0-3 since defeating Dominick Cruz for the bantamweight title in 2016.
While many were impressed by Munhoz’s performance, one man far less intimidated was rising star Petr Yan. Yan, who is 12-1, tweeted “I want to fight Pedro Munhoz next. Who want to watch it”?
In a post-fight interview with TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, Munhoz reacted to Yan’s call out, saying “I just knocked out a former champion… tell him to suck my balls.” The normally mild-mannered Munhoz continued, stating “he’s tough, everyone’s tough in this division, but now I have to fight for the title.”
Yan later responded to Munhoz, tweeting “This guy who lost to Dodson won by lucky punch today and now thinks he will fight for the title.”
Yan followed this up with another tweet, saying “you are a filthy animal after a response like that! You and I will definitely meet as soon as you take off your skirt!”
you are an filthy animal after response like that! You and I will definitely meet as soon as you take off your skirt! @PedroMunhozmma https://t.co/q5UmFtQRvJ
— Petr “No Mercy” Yan (@PetrYanUFC) March 4, 2019
Yan last fought at UFC Fight Night 145 where he defeated John Dodson via decision in incredibly dominant fashion, despite being knocked down in the second round. It is interesting that, as Yan mentioned, when Munhoz faced Dodson at UFC 222 the Brazilian lost a narrow split decision to the former The Ultimate Fighter winner, perhaps suggesting Yan will have the advantage should he meet ‘The Young Punisher’ in the octagon.
Since his victory over Dodson, Yan has also called out Jimmie Rivera who is the current #6 ranked bantamweight, however, this appears to have fallen on deaf ears. This lack of response prompted Yan to tweet “Did Jimmie Rivera go missing. Someone tell him to respond to my callout.”
After his victory in Prague, Yan announced that he had signed his third contract with the UFC, ensuring the former ACB bantamweight champion will remain with the promotion for another six fights. The Russian will certainly hoping that within these fights he is able to earn a title shot and a chance at becoming Russia’s second UFC champion.