[7] Yan was born to a father of mixed Chinese (paternal) and Georgian-Russian (maternal) descent and a Russian mother.

[8][9][10] In sixth grade, Yan began training in ITF taekwondo and often fought in the streets and at the school in his area, so his family often moved to try and prevent this.

[4] Yan graduated from the Siberian Federal University in the city of Omsk with a degree in Physical Culture and Sport.

He was said to have gained many fans after his debut with the promotion where he fought Brazilian fighter Renato Velame, who at the time, already had 26 fights in his MMA career.

The win granted Yan the opportunity to fight Magomed Magomedov for the championship belt in the bantamweight division.

[4] Yan lost his first fight when he faced Magomed Magomedov on 26 March 2016 in Moscow at ACB 32: "The Battle of Lions".

[11] Following his first professional loss, Yan returned to face English mixed martial artist Ed Arthur at ACB 41: Path to Triumph, in Sochi.

[12] In the spring of 2017, Yan was scheduled to have a rematch with Magomed Magomedov on 15 April at ACB 57: Payback in Moscow.

This time, Yan exacted revenge and defeated Magomedov by unanimous decision after fighting all five hard-fought rounds.

[13] Following his win, Yan returned in September 2017 to fight Brazilian contender Matheus Mattos at ACB: 71 in Moscow.

[14] Following his first title defense, Yan signed a contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship in January 2018.

[18] However, Andrade pulled out of the fight on 9 August citing a foot injury,[19] and he was replaced by Jin Soo Son.

[27] Yan won the fight by unanimous decision, after landing hard punches and kicks whilst Dodson's back was against the cage.

[43] Yan lost the fight by disqualification in the fourth round due to an illegal knee, losing the UFC Bantamweight Championship.

[56] The decision was seen as highly controversial with many fans and fighters adamantly expressing their belief that Yan was the rightful winner.

[62] However, Yan withdrew from the bout citing an injury and was replaced by Chris Gutiérrez, whom Song would defeat.

[72][73] During Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Yan posted an image on social media of the countries' flags and a dove of peace.