Tag: Aljamain Sterling

Aljamain Sterling discusses Max Holloway’s strategy against Topuria: ‘Fatigue could be key’

Aljamain Sterling discusses Max Holloway’s strategy against Topuria: 'Fatigue could be key'Former undisputed bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has claimed “fatigue” could be an interesting factor ahead of October’s featherweight title…

Aljamain Sterling discusses Max Holloway’s strategy against Topuria: 'Fatigue could be key'

Former undisputed bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling has claimed “fatigue” could be an interesting factor ahead of October’s featherweight title fight at UFC 308 between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway — as he gears up for his own future title hopes.

Sterling, a former dominant undisputed bantamweight champion, and the current number eight ranked featherweight contender, is slated to return at UFC 307 at the beginning of the month, taking on surging Russian challenger, Movsar Evloev in a potential title-eliminator in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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And making his featherweight divisional bow at UFC 300 back in April, Uniondale native, Sterling took home a dominant shutout unanimous decision win over perennial contender, Calvin Kattar, nullifying his striking prowess with an impressive, wrestling and grappling-heavy approach.

Aljamain Sterling deserves immediate title rematch UFC he's the champ Daniel Cormier
Mandatory Credit: Cooper Neil – Zuffa LLC

Aljamain Sterling claims Max Holloway is interesting test for Ilia Topuria

And sharing his thoughts on the October bantamweight title fight between Topuria and Holloway, Serra-Longo MMA staple, Sterling has claimed fatigue could be an interesting factor to keep an eye on ahead of the UFC 308 pairing.

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“If Max (Holloway) could stay on his bike and touch him (Ilia) Topuria from the outside, it would be very interesting to see what happens in the later rounds,” Aljamain Sterling said on his YouTube channel. “We haven’t seen Topuria exhausted or tired yet. In round five with Josh Emmett, he was in the driver’s seat the whole time, but what happens if you could set a little fatigue in him?”

“Him having some failed takedown attempts, or even if he gets the takedowns and Max can get back up, it makes the fight very interesting where he starts to use up a lot more energy than expected,” Aljamain Sterling explained. “He’s always in your face with those spinning back-kicks. If Max gets back to the old-school Max, it’s a very intriguing fight.”

Former Champ Analyzes Topuria vs. Holloway Title Fight At UFC 308: ‘What Happens If You Could Set A Little Fatigue In Him?’

Aljamain Sterling recently offered his insights on the upcoming featherweight title clash between reigning champion Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway at UFC 308. “El Matador” is gearing up to put his title on the line for the first time against Holloway in the headlining bout of an eagerly awaited pay-per-view event set to take place […]

Continue Reading Former Champ Analyzes Topuria vs. Holloway Title Fight At UFC 308: ‘What Happens If You Could Set A Little Fatigue In Him?’ at MMA News.

Aljamain Sterling recently offered his insights on the upcoming featherweight title clash between reigning champion Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway at UFC 308.

“El Matador” is gearing up to put his title on the line for the first time against Holloway in the headlining bout of an eagerly awaited pay-per-view event set to take place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on October 26.

Topuria claimed the 145-pound championship with a stunning knockout of former titleholder Alexander Volkanovski in the second round at UFC 298 in February. He has secured five victories in under two rounds, dismantling formidable foes such as Bryce Mitchell, Jai Herbert, and Josh Emmett.

On the other hand, “Blessed” is preparing for his third bid to recapture the featherweight crown, which slipped from his grasp against Volkanovski back in December 2019. Despite two valiant rematch efforts that fell short, Holloway has roared back with a trio of victories. He is coming off a last-second knockout of Justin Gaethje in a lightweight showdown at UFC 300 in April, a victory that also crowned him the BMF champion.

Topuria has built his reputation on a combination of aggressive striking and powerful grappling. Meanwhile, Holloway’s extensive experience and resilience make him a daunting challenge for any opponent.

“Funk Master” suggests that if Holloway can expertly control the distance and fully capitalize on his reach advantage, he has a real shot at toppling Topuria.

Sterling Predicts Holloway Might Push Topuria To His Limits In Championship Rounds

During a recent appearance on Verse Us with Eric Nicksick, Sterling weighed in on the Topuria vs. Holloway clash at UFC 308. The former UFC bantamweight champion acknowledged “El Matador’s” knockout power, yet he pointed out several potential vulnerabilities.

Sterling believes that if Holloway can maintain the fight on the feet and execute his striking game with precision, it could spell trouble for the defending champion.

“Topuria is a savage; that guy can crack, but he struggled with Volkanovski in the first round,” Sterling said. “Enter Max Holloway: great footwork, high guard, long punches. He has shorter reach than Volkanovski, but his footwork is what helps him so much in his fights, and he’s great durability. So if he gets back to his kicking game and stays in his range—Topuria, I think, is 5’6″, maybe 5’7″. Max has a shorter reach for a guy at 145 pounds; I think it’s like 67″. So you look at that, you look at Topuria’s great grappling, but Max has great takedown defense. If Max could stay on his bike and touch him from the outside, it would be very interesting to see what happens in the later rounds.”

“Funk Master” went on to highlight that Topuria’s cardio remains relatively untested, and he suggested that if “Blessed” can extend the fight into the fourth and fifth rounds while maintaining a measured striking approach, it could pose yet another challenge for the undefeated Georgian-Spaniard.

“We haven’t seen Topuria [get] exhausted or tired yet. In round five with Josh Emmett, he was in the driver’s seat the whole time, but what happens if you could set a little fatigue in him—him having some failed takedown attempts, or even if he gets the takedowns and Max can get back up—it makes the fight very interesting. He’s always in your face with those spinning back kicks. If Max gets back to the old-school Max, it’s a very intriguing fight.”

Continue Reading Former Champ Analyzes Topuria vs. Holloway Title Fight At UFC 308: ‘What Happens If You Could Set A Little Fatigue In Him?’ at MMA News.

Aljamain Sterling’s Cornerman Clarifies Any Doubt Over Faking Petr Yan Disqualification & Title Win

Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has always had a somewhat rocky relationship with certain parts of the MMA fanbase. “Funkmaster” has an awkward striking style and a strong grappling game which means that his fights aren’t always the most exciting to watch, even if he’s incredibly effective at what he does. Aside from this, […]

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling’s Cornerman Clarifies Any Doubt Over Faking Petr Yan Disqualification & Title Win at MMA News.

Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has always had a somewhat rocky relationship with certain parts of the MMA fanbase.

“Funkmaster” has an awkward striking style and a strong grappling game which means that his fights aren’t always the most exciting to watch, even if he’s incredibly effective at what he does.

Aside from this, another point that saw some of the UFC’s audience take a dislike to Sterling was what happened at UFC 259, where he challenged Petr Yan for the 135-pound title.

Yan landed an illegal knee to Sterling’s head whilst he was a downed opponent in the fourth round which the challenger couldn’t recover from.

As a result, Yan was disqualified, meaning that the title changed hands in disappointing fashion.

Eric Nicksick Recalls How Aljamain Sterling Had No Memory Of UFC 259 On His Journey Home

Despite the knee strike being a clear and obvious foul on Yan’s side, some fans didn’t like the way Sterling won the title as a result, and questioned whether he actually couldn’t continue or if he was looking for a way out because the fight wasn’t going his way.

This was cleared up during a recent episode of the Verse Us podcast where Sterling joined Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick, who was in his corner on that night.

Nicksick provided more details about how that decision was made to not continue and what the aftermath of that knee landing was like.

He recalled how, after nominating himself to stay with Sterling and take him back home from the hospital, it was clear that he had no memory of what had just happened.

“I said to Ray [Longo], I’ll go to the hospital with him and I had to sit in the f****** parking lot. You didn’t get to sit in the waiting room, this is COVID era so I get a text from him or whoever was kind of there, one of the nurses or UFC personnel, ‘Hey, he’s ready, you can come around the back, you can pick him up.’

“We get in the car and what, 30-minute ride home and this is why I know, from a personal level, that this dude wasn’t faking. 30-minutes of him asking round after round after round. I say this because guys that I know that have been knocked out or have had head trauma have asked the same questions. ‘What happened in round one? What happened in round two?’ Going through everything in their head.”

Sterling returns at UFC 307 where he faces Movsar Evloev in search of his second consecutive win at featherweight.

Read also: Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: “Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent”

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling’s Cornerman Clarifies Any Doubt Over Faking Petr Yan Disqualification & Title Win at MMA News.

Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: “Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent”

Aljamain Sterling believes that UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has had assistance from the promotion to help build him into a star. Though “Suga” still has to beat the opponents that are put in front of him, and has done so in spectacular fashion, his former opponent thinks that this has been aided to some […]

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Aljamain Sterling believes that UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has had assistance from the promotion to help build him into a star.

Though “Suga” still has to beat the opponents that are put in front of him, and has done so in spectacular fashion, his former opponent thinks that this has been aided to some degree.

The previous titleholder compared O’Malley’s run in the bantamweight division to Jake Paul’s career in boxing, where at a face level, he’s delivering inside the ring by producing huge fights and big knockouts.

Where a lot of people have issues with Paul’s victories is where the odds are heavily weighted in his favor by things like weight discrepancies and big differentials in both activity and experience.

Aljamain Sterling Says UFC Always Planned To Talk Him Into Quick Turnaround For Sean O’Malley Title Defense

Sterling recently appeared on the Verse Us podcast with Xtreme Couture head coach Eric Nicksick where he spoke about O’Malley’s upcoming title defense against his friend and training partner, Merab Dvalishvili.

“Funkmaster” used his own experiences of fighting “Suga” at UFC 292 to explain why he believes there is a comparison that can be made to “The Problem Child”.

Sterling says that not only was O’Malley fast-tracked into a title shot, he was made to defend his belt against the returning Henry Cejudo first and claims that the promotion were always going to push him towards making a quick turnaround for UFC 292, which would hinder his preparations and recovery.

The current featherweight contender, who is back in action at UFC 307, has been very outspoken about this decision and how he was eventually talked into fighting O’Malley in Boston shortly after beating Cejudo.

“I want to see the best of the best compete, no excuses. Now, enter O’Malley, he fights one ranked guy, gets a title shot, split decision albeit and this is not me hating, this is just calling a spade a spade. He’s supposed to fight me next which would give me enough time to prepare but instead, they say, ‘Oh Cejudo’s coming back, we want you to fight him.’ In the back of their mind, they’re like whoever wins this, we’re gonna turn them around for August.

“So he knows all this, I’m pretty sure he knows all this and only O’Malley can disclose all this. Or at least, the UFC knew for sure that this is what they wanted to do. Give him the best opportunity that they could to become a world champion by hindering and stacking the deck against his opponent. It’s like the Jake Paul route. Stacking the deck so that you get these highlights or you get these favorable match ups and these wins to look as good as you do.”

Read also: Sean O’Malley’s Coach Calls Merab Dvalishvili ‘Scary’ But Highlights Major Flaw In His Game: ‘Too Close To The Fight Now To Fix’

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling Accuses Sean O’Malley Of Being Given The ‘Jake Paul Route’ By The UFC: “Stacking The Deck Against His Opponent” at MMA News.

Aljamain Sterling Calls Out Dana White’s ‘Over The Top Reaction’ To Merab Dvalishvili Publicly Posting Training Cut

Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling doesn’t believe Dana White had an appropriate reaction to Merab Dvalishvili’s recent cut. Dvalishvili, who is set to challenge current 135-pound kingpin Sean O’Malley for the title in the main event of Noche UFC/UFC 306 at the Sphere next month, was scolded by White this week after he posted […]

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Former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling doesn’t believe Dana White had an appropriate reaction to Merab Dvalishvili’s recent cut.

Dvalishvili, who is set to challenge current 135-pound kingpin Sean O’Malley for the title in the main event of Noche UFC/UFC 306 at the Sphere next month, was scolded by White this week after he posted a video online showing a facial laceration.

The Georgian uploaded a number of videos of the cut he suffered 25 days out from his first championship opportunity, raising slight concern in the community about his status for the September 14 card.

“The Machine” has since clarified that nothing will prevent him from making the walk to do battle with “Sugar” in Las Vegas, but that doesn’t mean everyone thinks the decision to publicly display the cut was smart.

Chief among them was the UFC CEO, who slammed Dvalishvili during the press conference following Tuesday’s episode of Dana White’s Contender Series.

“The whole world knows about Merab’s cut. He posted it. Our guys are so dumb, it’s next-level unbelievable,” White said. “All the stuff I talk about boxing, what I will give boxing, is when something happens in a camp, man, let me tell you what, it does not leak. Our guys can’t f*cking wait to throw it up on social media.

“It’s a small cut. It’s no big deal. But obviously, it needed to be posted,” White continued. “Why the f*ck would you want him to know that? It is next-level stupid. Some of these guys are so stupid it’s mind-boggling. It’s unbelievable.”

Those comments, however, didn’t sit well with one of Dvalishvili’s closest friends and teammates, and somebody who’s had his own fair share of back and forth with White in the past…

Sterling Defends Teammate Dvalishvili From White’s Wrath

When it comes to rocky relationships between fighter and higher-ups, not many have had public disagreements with the likes of White quite like Sterling.

The now-featherweight contender has taken issue with comments regarding his desire not to fight Dvalishvili while he was bantamweight champ, as well as what he saw as pressure to accept a quick turnaround to fight O’Malley last August.

Suffice to say, “Funk Master” has never been one to shy away from speaking out against things said by the UFC CEO. And that trend continued this week, with Sterling leaping to the defense of Dvalishvili following White’s scathing reaction to the post detailing the Georgian’s laceration in training.

“Everyone is making a much bigger deal over ‘the little cut’, even the boss. Merab shares his stories of training camp, the good, the bad, the ugly, and ppl LOVE him for it. There’s nothing ‘stupid’ about it, period,” Sterling wrote. “He’s training, and will show up Sept 14, like he always does. Is this about betting lines?? Is it about a fight cancelation?? Respectfully, this reaction was a bit over the top IMHO.”

Dvalishvili has since shown his return to the training room on social media, as he gears up for the chance to bring O’Malley’s reign to an end and avenge his teammate’s knockout loss to the striking specialist in Boston last year.

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling Calls Out Dana White’s ‘Over The Top Reaction’ To Merab Dvalishvili Publicly Posting Training Cut at MMA News.

Aljamain Sterling Explains Why Kai Kara-France’s Win Over Steve Erceg Was A Bad Stoppage

Kai Kara-France made a real statement with his performance in the co-main event this past Saturday night in Perth. It was a battle of top flyweight contenders at UFC 305 and “Don’t Blink” showed why he still belongs in title contention following consecutive defeats. He was able to stop Perth’s own Steve Erceg in the […]

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Kai Kara-France made a real statement with his performance in the co-main event this past Saturday night in Perth.

It was a battle of top flyweight contenders at UFC 305 and “Don’t Blink” showed why he still belongs in title contention following consecutive defeats.

He was able to stop Perth’s own Steve Erceg in the opening round, after dropping him with a huge overhand shot that caught the former title challenger clean.

Some follow-up strikes led to him earning a performance bonus for his third knockout or TKO win in the UFC’s 125-pound weight class.

While it was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the night, a former champion did have a point to address after seeing the stoppage.

Aljamain Sterling Says Steve Erceg Was Still Intelligently Defending Himself At The Time Of UFC 305 Stoppage

In his post-UFC 305 breakdown on his YouTube channel, former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling discussed the stoppage in this fight.

“Funk Master” has spoken before about his loss to Sean O’Malley at UFC 292, where he believes the referee jumped in too early when he was still intelligently defending himself despite taking some follow-up strikes after being dropped.

Sterling made the same case for Erceg in this fight after seeing how, in his opinion, “Astro Boy” was still in the fight even though his opponent was putting strikes together to get the finish.

“Now, the stoppage was a little odd for me. Like yeah he was hurt beforehand but then he’s starting to recover. My only gripe with the stoppage is you see the guy turn and you see him cover and then you see him trying to get up, he gets hit once, like let him eat a couple because it’s not like it’s catching him clean on the chin right? That would be clear, you’re not intelligently defending yourself but if you at least are smart enough to put an arm up, it’s like, ‘Hey, this is better here. It might rattle my head a little bit but it’s better here than just taking clean shots to the dome.’

“If you can be conscious enough to do that, I think the refs should pay attention to those scenarios. Yes, the whole sequence, I’m not a ref. I’m not a ref but from a fighter’s standpoint, we think about these things and I don’t even think Erceg even like really was protesting or anything but I’m sure he was still in the back of his mind like, ‘I don’t want to be that guy but I’m still kinda annoyed because I could have maybe fought through that and weathered the storm.’ Who knows, we would never know now.”

Read also: Alex Pereira, Belal Muhammad, Aljamain Sterling & Other MMA Fighters React To Dricus Du Plessis Submitting Israel Adesanya At UFC 305

Continue Reading Aljamain Sterling Explains Why Kai Kara-France’s Win Over Steve Erceg Was A Bad Stoppage at MMA News.