Interim UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan has shared an image calling for peace between Russia and Ukraine, following the former’s invasion of the latter.
Russian tanks entered the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv, on Friday morning as the city was rocked by explosions and gunfire.
Local residents were urged to fight back with Molotov cocktails against the encroaching Russian forces, which appeared to be moving through the suburb of Obolon – just over five miles north of the city centre and its parliamentary buildings. A Ukrainian government adviser said he expected Russia to try to break into Kyiv during the day. Citizens in the capital were urged to proceed to shelters due to an air raid alarm.
Yan, 29, reacted to the situation by sharing an image of the nations’ flags painted onto two hands, which formed the image of a dove – a symbol of peace.
The image was posted on Yan’s Instagram story.
Yan previously held the undisputed UFC bantamweight title but lost the belt to Aljamain Sterling last March, when he was disqualified for landing an illegal knee on the Jamaican-American.
The 29-year-old followed that result with a points victory over Cory Sandhagen in October to win the interim title, with Sterling recovering from neck surgery at the time.
Yan’s fight of the year contender with Sandhagen took place instead of a rematch between the Russian and Sterling, due to the latter’s injury struggles, but that bout has now been rescheduled for UFC 273 on 9 April.
