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Petr Yan’s religion is Orthodox Christianity. The former UFC bantamweight champion from Russia has described himself as a “Russian Orthodox Christian man,” and his Wikipedia biography lists him as an Orthodox Christian. This article covers what is documented about the Petr Yan religion question, his background, and what he has said about his faith.
Early Life and Background
Petr Yan was born on 11 February 1993 in Dudinka, a town in Russia’s Krasnoyarsk Krai in Siberia. He began with ITF taekwondo in school, followed his older brother into boxing, and later moved into mixed martial arts. According to his Wikipedia biography, he is married to Julia Yan and the couple have two sons.
Yan’s family background is mixed. In a 2020 South China Morning Post report, he responded to online abuse about his Chinese roots and said his paternal grandfather was Chinese, as RADII later summarised. That ancestry has fuelled questions about his upbringing and spiritual beliefs, but it has not changed how he identifies: as a Russian and an Orthodox Christian.
Petr Yan’s Religious Views
The most direct statement on the Petr Yan religion question comes from that 2020 interview, in which he described himself as a “Russian Orthodox Christian man.” RADII repeated the description in its coverage of his UFC 299 fight against Song Yadong, and Wikipedia cites the South China Morning Post article for its statement that Yan is an Orthodox Christian.
Orthodox Christianity is the largest Christian tradition in Russia, and the Russian Orthodox Church is the country’s dominant church. Readers who want background on how the Orthodox tradition differs from Catholicism and Protestantism can read our guide to the three major branches of Christianity, or the overview of Christian history, beliefs and practices.
Yan keeps the details of his faith largely private. EssentiallySports reported in December 2025 that he does not frequently discuss his beliefs in public, and that his connection to Christianity is most visible through the Orthodox cultural setting he grew up in. There are no documented statements from Yan about a specific parish, a particular spiritual practice or a conversion, so this article does not claim any.
Some of the UFC’s best-known Russian-speaking fighters, such as Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev, are Muslim. Yan is not among them; his own description of his religion is consistent across the sources reviewed here.
Frequently Asked Questions
What religion is Petr Yan?
Petr Yan is an Orthodox Christian. He has described himself as a “Russian Orthodox Christian man,” a description reported by the South China Morning Post in 2020 and repeated by RADII.
Is Petr Yan Muslim?
No source reviewed for this article describes Petr Yan as Muslim. His own stated identity is Orthodox Christian.
Is Petr Yan Chinese?
Petr Yan is a Russian national who was born in Dudinka, in Russia’s Krasnoyarsk Krai. He has said that his paternal grandfather was Chinese, which is the source of his Chinese heritage. His stated religion is unrelated to that ancestry.
Does Petr Yan talk about his faith publicly?
Rarely. EssentiallySports notes that Yan does not frequently discuss his faith in public, and the clearest statement about his religion came when he responded to online abuse about his heritage.
Sources
- Russian UFC fighter Petr Yan hits back at online abuse by Iranian novice over his Chinese roots, South China Morning Post (27 March 2020)
- Song Yadong falls to former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC 299, RADII
- Is Petr Yan Muslim or Christian? All About Ex-UFC Champ’s Religion, EssentiallySports (3 December 2025)
- Petr Yan, Wikipedia
Another UFC champion from the Caucasus, see also Merab Dvalishvili’s religion.
