Aljamain Sterling believes things should have gone different in what has turned out to be his final bantamweight fight.
Aljamain Sterling Would Bet His Life Savings He Win in the Rematch
Currently in the Bantamweight division we currently entering the “Sugar Show” due to Sean O’Malley currently holding the bantamweight title. This is due to Sean O’Malley being able to capitalise on his moment back at UFC 292 last August 2023. O’Malley was able to wait patiently for his opportunity to land his picture-perfect right-hand counter to connect on Aljamain Sterling. This gave O’Malley a second-round TKO victory. This allowed O’Malley to clinch the world title.
Since becoming the champion he has gone to defend his title. This was due to a unanimous decision victory against Marlon Vera in their rematch at UFC 299 in March 2024. One month, after this victory Sterling would return to action however, this time he would be making his featherweight debut. Sterling would be able to come out of this successful due to picking up a unanimous decision victory when he battled Calvin Kattar. While Sterling has been clear about not making excuses for his defeat to O’Malley. Aljamain Sterling has admitted the circumstances weren’t ideal on his end. This is due to Sterling having to make a quick turnaround after defending his then-belt against Henry Cejudo in May 2023. Speaking to Kanpai Media, Sterling explained he would win in a rematch;
“O’Malley showed up that night. It was an off-night for myself and the better man won that night,”
“That’s why we say, ‘Any place, anywhere, any time.’ Sometimes it’s your night, sometimes it’s not, and unfortunately for me, it just didn’t go my way.”
“I do know if I had a rematch, and as long as he waited from August to fighting ‘Chito’ in March, give me that time to recover and prepare and to cut my weight the proper way. In a rematch, I would bet my life savings on that.”
Merab’s Time to Shine
Aljamain Sterling is now looking to climb the rankings in the featherweight division however, he will still look over in the bantamweight division. This is due to his teammate and best friend Merab Dvalishvili still competing in that weight division. Merab is currently the top bantamweight contender and has been since Aljamain Sterling lost his title. Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili both made it clear that a fight between them wouldn’t take place even if it would be for the title. Now that O’Malley has been able to get revenge for his defeat to Vera there now appears to be nothing stopping Dvalishvili from Challenging for gold. Aljamain Sterling Explained;
“Now he gets to fight Merab and I’m happy for my friend to get a chance to become a world champion the same way I gave an opportunity of a lifetime for O’Malley even while I handicapped myself,”
“Finally, he’s giving my boy a fair shake. Giving him a chance to realize a dream.”
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
