Aljamain Sterling chose one day to become a UFC featherweight.
After nine stellar years as one of the best bantamweights in the UFC, Sterling made his debut at 145 pounds at UFC 300, dominating Calvin Kattar for a pillar-to-post decision victory. Sterling was hoping that his success that night would catapult him to the forefront of title contention in his new weight class, but then former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway came out and put Justin Gaethje in the final two. It was a stunning KO in seconds, marking the highlight of the year. Win the promotional ceremonial BMF title.
Holloway is currently a top contender at both featherweight and lightweight, and Sterling can’t help but give credit where credit is due.
“I was like, ‘Justin, go over there!’ Justin, don’t go to the center! Whatever you do, don’t go to the center,” Sterling said with a laugh on The MMA Hour. Ta. “No, but that was insane. I thought Max won the fight, and for him to even say, ‘No more.’ To say, “UFC 300. Let’s go,” and do that is a big risk for a guy with as much hitting power as Gaethje, and it was very unexpected for him to get the upper hand in that exchange. I said in the breakdown that I felt Holloway had the advantage in speed, but the guy who attacks like a truck would be Gaethje, and Holloway would have the advantage in volume.
“[But] Beautiful right chin, oh, that was as beautiful as an overhand right that could land right in the pocket. And unfortunately Gaethje had to eat it, and that’s the game, dude. That photo would become a legendary, iconic photo. Well, I know what it’s like to have that guy face down, so it sucks, and hopefully Gaethje is okay now. And I’m a fan of both of them, but that was the worst. And Max, we hope you stay at 155! We don’t want you back here! ”
With his chances of winning the title dwindling, the 34-year-old Sterling focused his post-fight dialogue on a possible fight with Brian Ortega, but was also open to the idea of a grappler-on-grappler matchup with Mohsar Evloev. Ta.
As for Holloway, the former featherweight champion isn’t paying much attention to Sterling’s advice. Since UFC 300, “Blessed” has repeatedly called for a fight with Ilya Topria, even exchanging shots with the UFC featherweight champion in interviews and on social media. This fight is very interesting for Sterling.
“I think it’s a very interesting fight,” Sterling said. “I think Max’s footwork makes him a tricky opponent. Style creates conflict. Max has a hell of a chin. Ilia can crack. But the problem is, Ilia just And this is just my assessment, he drives you close enough to the cage and then lets go with that combination and puts guys out. It’s up to you, and whether Max is going to sit there and try to trade him against Cage, where Ilya is doing his best — and I think that’s an interesting dynamic for that fight, and it’s going to go in either direction. You see, he’s going to go.
“I don’t know [who I’m going to pick to win]. Even if Ilia is smart and doesn’t hit well, he’s going to go beat Max Holloway and use some elite level grappling and I think that could be the difference in the match, so It’s hard to say.”
