Petr Yan suffered a disappointing night at UFC 273 last weekend, failing to regain the promotion’s bantamweight belt from Aljamain Sterling after a split decision loss. Most had expected him to reclaim the title after surrendering it by disqualification to the Jamaican-American in March 2021, following an illegal knee to the head in the fourth round of a fight he had been dominating. A rejuvenated Sterling, fully recovered from neck surgery, upset the bookmakers and his critics with an impressive performance, though UFC president Dana White said he thought “the judges blew that one” . It was a razor-close decision that came down to the first round, with two of the three judges scoring it in Sterling’s favour. But George Hickman, one of Yan’s long-time coaching team in Phuket, Thailand, insisted the Russian can hold his head high. “In my opinion, and of course I’m biased, I thought Petr Yan won,” Hickman, MMA coach at the new Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA gym in Phuket, told the Post . “But you know what, he didn’t win on the judges’ scorecards, and Petr handled it like a true professional that he is. He’s another guy that it ain’t gonna be that long and he’ll be wearing the belt again.” UFC: Volk ‘the complete fighter’, finally getting due credit says coach “No Mercy” Yan (16-3) has now suffered two losses in his last three fights, having previously taken the UFC by storm and reeled off seven victories in a row – a run that culminated in the 29-year-old defeating the legendary Jose Aldo to win the vacant bantamweight title in July 2020. Hickman suggested Yan deserves to be “at the top of the pound-for-pound list”, however, along with Alex Volkanovski, the UFC featherweight champ who successfully defended his title against “The Korean Zombie” Jung Chan-sung in last weekend’s main event in Jacksonville, Florida. “Petr’s another guy who can strike, grapple, wrestle, Muay Thai, do it all,” Hickman said. “It really is heartbreaking that he didn’t get the win. “I thought he did, and I think a lot of people did, but Petr’s not gonna let that bother him. I’m sure he’s back in the gym already, or doing a run or something to get himself better. “He’s a guy that every single day he improves and he gets better, and I’m sure that the belt will be back with him before long.”