Petr Yan Unveils Custom Venum Shorts Ahead of UFC 333 Bantamweight Trilogy Bout

Petr Yan has revealed the custom Venum shorts he will wear at UFC 333, where he defends his bantamweight title in a trilogy fight against Merab Dvalishvili in Abu Dhabi.

The design leans on Yan's Russian heritage, combining flag colors with traditional textile patterns. A sword, shield and wings reference St. Michael, and Yan's "No Mercy" nickname is worked into the crest.

The symbolism fits Yan's background. The 33-year-old Russian trains out of the Archangel Michael Club, and the St. Michael imagery on the shorts echoes that team name. He enters the trilogy as champion at 20-5-0, a switch-stance striker who lands 5.12 significant strikes per minute at 54 percent accuracy. He is coming off a unanimous decision win over Dvalishvili at UFC 323 in December 2025, his most recent recorded fight, which followed decision wins over Marcus McGhee and Deiveson Figueiredo.

Dvalishvili, 35, is the number one ranked bantamweight and sits second in the pound-for-pound rankings. The Georgian fighter from the Serra-Longo Fight Team is 21-5-0 and built his game on relentless wrestling, averaging 6.4 takedowns per 15 minutes. He lands 4.33 significant strikes per minute at 42 percent accuracy. Before the loss to Yan, he won title defenses against Sean O'Malley by submission at UFC 316 and Cory Sandhagen by decision at UFC 320.

Why it matters

• The series is level at 1-1. Dvalishvili won a unanimous decision in March 2023, and Yan answered with his own unanimous decision at UFC 323.
• Both previous meetings went the full five rounds, and both ended on the scorecards.
• The style contrast is stark: Yan's striking output and accuracy edge Dvalishvili's by 0.79 strikes per minute and 12 percentage points, while Dvalishvili's takedown rate is more than four times Yan's 1.58 per 15 minutes.
• Physically, Yan holds a two-centimeter height edge, 170 cm to 168 cm, while Dvalishvili has a three-centimeter reach advantage at 173 cm to 170 cm.

The trilogy bout will settle who owns the rivalry, with the bantamweight title on the line in Abu Dhabi.