Henry Cejudo has turned down Petr Yan's offer to corner him for his world title fight at UFC 273.
Yan rematches UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling this Saturday night in Jacksonville, Florida. The Russian is without coaches for the fight after his entire corner team were denied US Visas, so Yan has looked elsewhere for support on the night.
The current interim champion recruited the help of now-retired UFC great Henry Cejudo and bantamweight star Sean O'Malley, telling The MMA Hour : "I hope [Henry] Cejudo and Sean O'Malley show up Saturday night, just need to make sure they don't give me s*** advice. Just give me ice and water and I'll be fine."
Cejudo then replied to Yan's comments by writing: "Sorry buddy I ain’t nobody’s Waterboy!" Yan has insisted that despite Cejudo's comments, the two fighters will be in his corner against Sterling.
Who wins at UFC 273 - Aljamain Sterling or Petr Yan? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
'Triple C' has been a part of The Korean Zombie's training camp as he challenges featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski in the UFC 273 main event. Cejudo will likely be helping Zombie warm up whilst Yan is fighting in the co-main event, which could mean he won't feature in the Russian's corner.
Cejudo had previously accepted Yan's offer to corner him, stating: "Get me a booster seat and I’ll work your corner…you kneed me". Since retiring from fighting, Cejudo has helped coach several UFC fighters such as Deiveson Figueiredo and former pound-for-pound No.1 Jon Jones.
Yan's corner team have never had Visa issues for any of the Russian's previous fights in the US. The decision to deny his coaches entry to the US comes after hard stances were placed against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February.
Yan is a heavy favourite to beat Sterling despite the American currently holding the undisputed bantamweight title. The pair first met at UFC 259 last March, with Yan dominating the fight until he was disqualified for landing an illegal knee.
Sterling became the first fighter in UFC history to win a world title by disqualification. A rematch between the pair was sought for UFC 267 last October, but Sterling withdrew after suffering neck issues.
An interim 135-pound title was made by the UFC when Sterling withdrew from his title defence. Yan fought fellow top-ranked bantamweight Cory Sandhagen for the belt as the Russian won a hard-fought unanimous decision in Abu Dhabi in a fight of the year contender.
