Ahead of his return to action in December, former bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has come under fire from fans and critics across social media, after the Uniondale native played up his chances of handing the undisputed featherweight champion, Ilia Topuria his first professional loss.
Sterling, who currently holds the number nine rank at the featherweight limit, is slated to make his sophomore outing at the weight limit at UFC 310 in December, taking on surging Russian challenger, Movsar Evloev in a high-stakes pairing.
And making his divisional debut at UFC 300 earlier this annum, Sterling, a former undisputed bantamweight titleholder turned in a one-sided unanimous decision win over perennial contender, Calvin Kattar.
As for Topuria, the unbeaten Georgian-Spaniard turned in an impressive win over former champion, Max Holloway in the pair’s title grudge fight earlier this month at UFC 308, finishing the Hawaiian with a blistering third round knockout win in Abu Dhabi.
Aljamain Sterling weighs up Ilia Topuria title matchup
And sharing his thoughts on a potential showdown with Topuria in the future, Aljamain Sterling confirmed he fancied his chances of handing the unbeaten striker his first-ever professional mixed martial arts loss.
“If I were to fight him (Ilia Topuria), God willing, I beat Movsar (Evloev) and I do get the crack, I do think I have a great style to neutralize his offense,” Aljamain Sterling said following UFC 308.
Aljamain Sterling thinks he has a great style for the champion Ilia Topuria
@funkmasterMMA pic.twitter.com/3XHUwQvCAA
— The Mac Life (@TheMacLife) October 28, 2024
However, having received backlash and his fair share of criticizm on social media in the aftermath of his comments, Sterling changed his tune — writing “Maybe I should’ve said I can’t wait to go strike with him instead.”
Himself welcoming the chance to fight former champion, Alexander Volkanovski in a rematch title fight next, Topuria’s wishes may have hit the skids already, with number three ranked challenger, Diego Lopes floating a potential interim title fight with the Australian as soon as February at UFC 312 ‘Downunder’.