Aljamain Sterling is now the bantamweight champion but not the way he wanted it to happen.
UFC 259 was a very exciting night of fights. The main card was filled with action from top to bottom, but the most jaw-dropping moment occurred in the bantamweight title fight featuring Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling. In the fourth round of the scheduled five-round fight, Yan hit Sterling with a hard knee to the head while Sterling was down. That is an illegal move. Because the knee was deemed illegal and intentional, the fight was ended right away and Sterling was crowned the bantamweight champion.
Aljamain Sterling is a veteran of the sport and has worked hard to get where he is in the UFC. He came to the organization back in 2014 and began to make a name for himself. This title shot has been long-awaited, and winning the belt by way of disqualification was not the way Sterling wanted. He took to Twitter to make a brief statement on the events of UFC 259.
“Not the way I ever want to win a fight,” Sterling wrote. “It was close, competitive and filled with action. I felt the knee was intentional, especially after the ref announced I was a downed opponent, so I didn’t expect to be hit. Yan is a bad dude! WE WILL DO IT AGAIN!”
Aljamain Sterling Would Be Open To Immediate Rematch With Yan
Despite the nature of the win, Sterling is now the champion. As with all champions, there is now a target on his back. He mentioned in his statement that he would be willing to run the fight back with Yan, but there is a long line of killers at 135 pounds waiting for a chance to face the newly crowned king.
Who do you think Sterling should face in his first title defense?
