Aljamain Sterling wants a shot at the UFC featherweight champion after recording back-to-back wins in the division.
The former bantamweight king has been pursuing a second UFC title ever since moving up following a knockout loss to Sean O’Malley that ended his record-breaking reign.
A loss to Movsar Evloev stalled his plans, but Sterling’s victory over Youssef Zalal in Saturday’s UFC Vegas 116 main event has put ‘Funk Master’ into the conversation.
If he does get the fight, the 36-year-old thinks his grappling prowess will be an issue for Volkanovski, even with the Australian’s past experience in that area.
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Is UFC Vegas 116 headliner Aljamain Sterling the most underappreciated fighter on the roster? 🤔
‘Funk Master’ broke records during his bantamweight title reign and is now pursuing a second championship.
Aljamain Sterling compares his grappling game with ex-Alexander Volkanovski opponent Islam Makhachev’s
Many believe Evloev has to be next in line for a title shot after he beat Lerone Murphy. The undefeated Russian is now 10-0 in the UFC.
But while that perfect run includes Evloev’s victory over Sterling in 2024, the American is hoping to leapfrog his ex-rival by pitching a “legend vs legend” clash with the Australian champ.
Volkanovski would no doubt be the favorite, especially having performed well against Islam Makhachev’s renowned wrestling game up at lightweight.
But Sterling thinks he would present a totally different threat to ‘Alexander the Great’.
“When he fought Islam, Islam had his back,” Sterling said during a backstage interview with UFC News. “And you saw when I had Youssef’s back. When I fought Movsar, I had his back but he did something really smart — he held my hands and didn’t give me the opportunity to open up and strike.
“I think that’s the difference. Volkanovski, when he got his back taken by Islam in that first fight, he was the one doing damage from having his back taken.
“That’s the difference between a guy like that and a guy like me,” he continued. “It’s just a different skill set.
“I’m not disrespecting Islam. I just bring a different problem, a different set of skills.”
Volkanovski lost a close decision to Makhachev at UFC 284. Some disputed the result, with Joe Rogan among the most vocal to suggest that the Australian deserved to become a two-division champ on home soil.
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