Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo is being worked on for the vacant UFC bantamweight championship.
At least for now, Henry Cejudo’s retirement is sticking. That means “Triple C” is no longer the UFC bantamweight champion. Cejudo announced his retirement after stopping Dominick Cruz via second-round TKO in the co-main event of UFC 249. UFC president Dana White said he’d contact Cejudo the following week to confirm whether or not his retirement was legit.
Exit Cejudo, enter Yan and Aldo.
Yan vs. Aldo Planned For Vacant UFC Bantamweight Gold
White appeared on ESPN’s SportsCenter to lay out the future of the UFC bantamweight division. The UFC boss revealed plans to book Yan vs. Aldo for the vacant bantamweight gold (via Marc Raimondi).
“White: Cejudo has retired. We’re talking right now about Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo for the vacant title. We don’t have a date or a place set yet.”
Yan has been on a roll. He’s riding a nine-fight winning streak and hasn’t suffered a loss since March 2016. He is 6-0 under the UFC banner.
As for Aldo, he is considered to be a future UFC Hall of Famer. Aldo once ruled the roost at featherweight and for a time was one of the most dominant fighters in MMA. He’s still a formidable foe today and some feel he should’ve been given the nod over Marlon Moraes in their Dec. 2019 clash. Moraes won that fight via split decision.
Aldo was supposed to fight Henry Cejudo for the bantamweight title at UFC 250 in Brazil. Those plans went awry due to travel restrictions brought about by the COVID-19 crisis. The title opportunity ended up going to Dominick Cruz.
Yan also had a different fight booked. He was set to meet Marlon Moraes at UFC Kazakhstan in June but that event ended up being canceled.
