Aljamain Sterling is talented enough to become the bantamweight version of Jon Jones, says Matt Serra.
Matt Serra has no doubt that Aljamain Sterling can beat Petr Yan at UFC 259 and start his reign over the bantamweight division.
Sterling is hoping to spoil Yan’s initial title defense as bantamweight champ in the first of three title fights at UFC 259 this weekend. “Funk Master” has won his last five fights at 135 pounds, the most recent being a submission win against Cory Sandhagen.
Speaking to MMA Junkie ahead of UFC 259, Serra was full of praise for Sterling.
“I think he’s ferocious,” Serra said. “I think the word is ferocious. He’s a natural fighter and he’s fearless. I think he’s truly looking forward to this fight with Aljo, and that’s pretty much it. I think he’s a great fighter, fantastic fighter.”
Sterling has only been stopped in the UFC by Marlon Moraes, with his other losses coming by split decision to Raphael Assuncao and Bryan Caraway. All the skills Sterling is showing point to a dominant future in the division, Serra said.
“I think if you look at his whole career, the talent was always there and it’s just how he put it together,” Serra said. “(Ray) Longo would always say that if I point something out in the fight like ‘Dude, that was amazing!’ Longo would always say, ‘Look, that guy can do whatever he wants to do upstairs.’ He really could be the Jon Jones of that division, that’s how talented he is, he could do what he wants.”
UFC 259 takes place this Saturday, March 6th, at the promotion’s APEX facility in Las Vegas. Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya will look to capture Jan Blachowicz’s light heavyweight title in the main event.