Aljamain Sterling News

Cole Shelton - March 26, 2021

Aljamain Sterling doesn’t understand why Petr Yan is getting a rematch. At UFC 259, Sterling fought Yan for the bantamweight title and it was a high-action fight. However, entering the championship rounds, Yan was starting to take over but in the fourth round, Yan landed an illegal knee and the fight was over and Sterling became the new champ by DQ.

Adam D Martin - March 26, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling responded to criticism from veteran referee John McCarthy about the Petr Yan illegal knee. Sterling won the UFC’s 135lbs belt at UFC 259 earlier this month in controversial fashion after Yan landed a knee to the head of a downed opponent and was disqualified. Referee Mark Smith deemed the knee intentional and gave Yan the DQ when Sterling was unable to continue. Afterward, Sterling came under heavy criticism online from fans, media, fellow fighters, and even officials when McCarthy questioned his desire not to continue. Of course, McCarthy is a podcast host these days, but he is arguably the most notable MMA referee of all time. So when he criticized Sterling for the knee incident, people listened to him.

Adam D Martin - March 17, 2021

UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling called Petr Yan a “dirty dickhead” as the two rivals got into a war of words on social media. Sterling and Yan’s 135lbs title fight at UFC 259 ended in controversy when the former champion nailed “Funk Master” in the head with an illegal knee in the fourth round, which left the challenger unable to continue. For the first time in UFC history, a title changed hands via DQ after referee Mark Smith deemed the foul international and Yan was disqualified. Sterling was, therefore, declared the winner and he’s now the champion.

Cole Shelton - March 16, 2021

Aljamain Sterling and Matt Serra appear to be on good terms. In the lead-up to UFC 259, Sterling was training at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas and added Eric Nicksick to his corner. With the addition of Nicksick, Serra was removed from the corner, and the former welterweight champion admitted he was very upset by the news. The former UFC welterweight champion also announced his retirement from cornering fighters which caused a ton of backlash on Sterling, who was already feeling the heat following the illegal knee DQ finish in the Petr Yan fight at UFC 259.

Cole Shelton - March 15, 2021

Petr Yan is confident he will get his belt back when he rematches Aljamain Sterling. At UFC 259, Yan was looking to defend his belt for the first time and after three rounds it appeared he would do just that. He had dropped Sterling in the first, stuffed 16 of 17 takedowns, and even took Sterling down on all seven attempts. The challenger was also fading, but in the fourth round, Yan threw an illegal knee and he was DQ’d meaning Sterling was the new champ.

Cole Shelton - March 15, 2021

Aljamain Sterling posted his first picture posing with the UFC title. In the first of three title fights at UFC 259, Sterling became the new champion due to Petr Yan throwing an illegal knee in the fourth round and being DQ’d. Following the fight, many blasted Sterling for exaggerating  his injury.

Adam Martin - March 14, 2021

UFC featherweight Billy Quarantillo, who was a guest, says that Aljamain Sterling didn’t want to celebrate at his UFC 259 post-fight party. Sterling has been the talk of the MMA community ever since last weekend’s UFC 259 card, where he won the UFC bantamweight title via DQ against Petr Yan. It was a controversial moment as this marked the first time in UFC history that a fighter has won a belt via DQ. It was even more controversial because there were many fans and even fellow fighters who thought Sterling hammed up the knee to get the win. When photos of Sterling emerged following the fight with him wearing his belt, it gave even more ammunition to those who were against “Funk Master,” particularly after Yan called Sterling a “clown” for the photos.

Adam D Martin - March 14, 2021

WWE superstar Big E explained how UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling can embrace a “babyface role” following his fight at UFC 259. Sterling won the UFC’s 135lbs belt last weekend at UFC 259 with a DQ win over Petr Yan. Since winning the belt, it feels like Sterling has made somewhat of a “heel turn” after taking photos with the belt, calling for a fight with Henry Cejudo, and not asking Matt Serra to corner him. However, according to WWE superstar Big E, the heel route is not one that Sterling should go down. Speaking to “The A-Side,” Big E said that Sterling should instead go play the “babyface role” and he explained why he thinks that should be the case.

Chris Taylor - March 13, 2021

Aljamain Sterling was one of many fighters who reacted online after tonight’s UFC Vegas 21 main card opener ended due to an illegal knee. A middleweight bout between Eryk Anders and Darren Stewart kicked off tonight’s main card action from Las Vegas. Unfortunately for both fighters, as well as fans watching from home, the bout was ended prematurely due an illegal knee.

Harry Kettle - March 12, 2021

UFC light heavyweight Anthony Smith has called out referees for needing to take more responsibility after the Petr Yan vs. Aljamain Sterling fight at UFC 259 last weekend. As most of us know by now the Yan vs. Sterling fight ended in controversial fashion when “Funk Master” won the UFC Bantamweight Championship due to Yan being disqualified. Sterling was clearly unable to continue and the knee was deemed to be intentional, which is why the decision was made.

Cole Shelton - March 11, 2021

Petr Yan believes Aljamain Sterling is the real paper champion. In the lead-up to UFC 259 and Yan’s first title defense, Sterling was calling the Russian a paper champion. He didn’t think Yan had earned his way to the title as he did, and he planned on proving that inside the Octagon.

Adam Martin - March 11, 2021

UFC Hall of Famer Matt Serra said he felt “disrespected” that Aljamain Sterling didn’t want to have him in his corner at UFC 259. Sterling fought Petr Yan for the UFC bantamweight title this past weekend and won it via fourth-round DQ when Yan made the bonehead mistake of illegally kneeing a downed opponent. In Sterling’s corner for that fight was his longtime coach Ray Longo and Xtreme Couture’s Eric Nicksick. Sterling grew up training with Team Serra – Longo on Long Island, but he recently started doing more training in Las Vegas. So when it came time to picking his cornerman for his title fight with Yan, Sterling had to make a choice, and he chose to leave Serra out of his corner instead of taking his longtime coach on the title journey.

Tom Taylor - March 10, 2021

UFC commentator Daniel Cormier has some advice for the promotion’s new bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling: Step away from the Internet. Sterling returned to the cage at UFC 259 last weekend, when he challenged Petr Yan for the bantamweight title. Regrettably, this fight ended in disaster when Yan blasted Sterling with an illegal knee. When Sterling was unable to continue, he was named the victor by disqualification, which meant that he became the new champion—but under pretty unfortunate circumstances.

Drake Riggs - March 9, 2021

As the new UFC bantamweight champion. Aljamain Sterling is already finding himself as a target for challengers – one of which is a former titleholder themselves. Capturing the title at UFC 259 via disqualification after Petr Yan landed an illegal knee, Sterling and the Russian former champ are expected to run things back as soon as possible. However, the man to hold the title prior to Yan, Henry Cejudo, appears to be seriously teasing a return to action.

Tom Taylor - March 9, 2021

The official UFC rankings have been updated after last Saturday’s stacked UFC 259 card, and as expected, there have been some significant changes. The biggest chances to the UFC rankings concern the men’s pound-for-pound list.

Harry Kettle - March 9, 2021

Aljamain Sterling coach Ray Longo has hit back at the trolls coming after the new champion in the wake of his win at UFC 259. Sterling captured the UFC Bantamweight Championship on Saturday night after Petr Yan was disqualified due to an illegal knee he threw. In the wake of the event, with photos of Sterling holding the belt being leaked onto social media, many fans decided to throw a whole lot of grief at him and his team.

Christopher Taylor - March 8, 2021

Aljamain Sterling has issued a statement following the immense backlash he has received for posing with the UFC bantamweight title. Sterling (20-3 MMA) captured the promotions coveted bantamweight title at Saturday’s UFC 259 event, but it was not in the fashion he or anyone watching desired.

Cole Shelton - March 8, 2021

Aljamain Sterling wouldn’t care if the UFC decides not to book a rematch between him and Petr Yan next. In the first of three title fights at UFC 259, Yan was looking to defend his belt against Sterling. Early on, Yan dropped the challenger and was stuffing the takedowns and as the fight wore on, he was starting to pick the Russian apart. However, in the fourth round, Yan threw an illegal knee which ended the fight and he was DQ’d and Sterling became the new champion.