UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling feels “sick and gross” after piling on 40lb in under ten days following his title unification bout against Petr Yan at UFC 273.
Aljamain Sterling stepped on the scales at 134.5 pounds on the day of the weigh-ins to make the 135lb limit of the bantamweight division. Just nine days after becoming the undisputed champion, Sterling ballooned up 40lb and feels like a “bacon”.
In a post made to his Instagram, Sterling shared a video of the scale reading his weight at 176 pounds which is considerably higher than what he fought at.
“I am a bacon right now! 
Enjoying the fruits of my labor, but this is getting ridiculous 
#FatAndHappyAljo“
He also took to Twitter to share his sentiments on the newly found physique.
“Look at this bantamweight! That’s a sick, sick, man. Exactly 1 week after my fight. Wow…”
“I feel fat and gross. My cheeks are so big. I don’t recognize myself. Diet starts tmw.”
I feel fat and gross. My cheeks are so big. I don’t recognize myself. Diet starts tmw.
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) April 17, 2022
MMA athletes live a very demanding lifestyle from a physical standpoint. A good chunk of fighters trim down their weight to compete in lighter divisions in order to gain a perceived advantage. Aljamain Sterling’s weight gain is relatively steep but hardly a surprise given that 10 to 20 lbs of the total mass must’ve been the water weight he accumulated after rehydrating following the weigh-ins.
Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman responded to Sterling’s post with “damn bro”, possibly relating to Aljo’s plight having gone through many weight cuts in his career.
Aljamain Sterling wins the unification bout
Going into the title unification bout against former bantamweight interim champion Petr Yan as an underdog at UFC 273, Aljamain Sterling rose to the occasion to snatch a unanimous decision win and regain his status as the true champ of the division. Previously, Aljo had won the first bout against Yan via a controversial disqualification due to Yan throwing an illegal knee.
Many fans did not see Aljo as the true champion given the way he won the title but the doubts will be removed now that he won the rematch fair and square. UFC president Dana White believes that the judges dropped the ball on the scorecards and favored Yan to win the unification bout.
Most speculation stems from the first round which remains disputed whether it should’ve gone to Yan or Sterling. Either way any of us score it now, it doesn’t matter as Aljo will continue to be the champ and will likely face T.J. Dillashaw in his next fight with a possible third fight against Yan up for play as well.