Petr Yan comes from behind to beat Merab and win the trilogy

Petr Yan has won the trilogy. In the co-main event of UFC 333, the bantamweight champion beat Merab Dvalishvili by unanimous decision, 48-47 on all three scorecards. Yan now leads their series 2-1.

MERAB'S FAST START

Dvalishvili came out the way he always does: pressure, right hands and takedown after takedown. He won the first two rounds by pushing a pace few fighters can match. Yan kept getting back to his feet and landed a head kick late in round 2, but Merab was ahead.

THE KICK THAT CHANGED IT

In round 3, Yan stopped three straight takedowns, then sank a left kick into Merab's body that sent him stumbling. From that moment it was Yan's fight. He kept attacking the body, stuffed Merab's increasingly desperate shots in round 4, and in round 5 landed a jumping knee and a combination that wobbled him.

"I was listening to my coach," Yan said through an interpreter. His coach had told him that winning the fifth round would win him the fight.

WHAT'S NEXT

Yan, who had never defended a UFC title before tonight, called out the division: "Give me Song Yadong, give me King Kong! Give me anybody! Just make the weight."

It is already being called a Fight of the Year contender.