UFC 333 results: Petr Yan outduels Merab Dvalishvili to retain title in Fight of the Year contender

Yan started slow but picked up the pace quickly to take control of the action over 25 minutes Petr Yan had to dig deep in his bantamweight championship defense against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 333, but he was able to put on one of the most impressive performances of his career to win a rubber match over the former champion. Dvalishvili won their first meeting in 2023 before going on to claim the title Yan had previously held. Yan kicked off his second reign as champion this past December, avenging that loss with a decision win over Dvalishvili. Be sure to keep up with all the action on Saturday with our live coverage of UFC 333, including round-by-round scoring and updated fight results throughout the night!

Dvalishvili, being a notably faster starter than Yan, brought an expected high-energy approach to the start of the fight. Dvalishvili came out firing big right hands and pushing for takedowns, though Yan capably fended off the takedown attempts to keep the fight standing, and quickly got to his feet in the moments when Dvalishvili was able to finish a takedown attempt. Despite Yan's strong grappling defense, Dvalishvili's constant movement and attack put Yan in a position where he was unable to use his own offensive tools. Yan landed some hard punches in the early