The last few years have seen bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling work hard to improve his skillset and fighting abilities. Now that he is primed for a shot at UFC gold, he is happy with his style, regardless of what others think.
At UFC 259, Sterling will be facing Petr Yan for the bantamweight title. However this was not something that came easy for the Long Island native, as he had to put together a five-fight winning streak to earn that title shot.
This streak saw him improve after some close, but still deserved losses, which helped Aljo improve his skills as a fighter. Now he has reached the point where he is a legitimate problem for anyone, once the fight hits the ground.
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Aljamain Sterling Does Not Care What You Think
As much as Aljamain Stelring has improved, there are always going to be people who do not care for a grappling heavy style of fighting. This is what he employs, and what he promises to do to Petr Yan on March 6th.
The fact of the matter is, the Funkmaster does not care what people have to say about his style. When asked in a recent interview what the difference was between the Aljo who lost those close fights, and the current version of him, he says that this lack of caring is one of the big changes he has made.
“(I’m) very different. I think the guy that I am now doesn’t give a s—t about what other people think about his fight style, and he does what he has to do to win,” Sterling said.
“I think that’s the big difference, and that has helped me understand who I am as a fighter, not letting other people’s thoughts and media write-ups dictate how I want to approach a fight.”
“I’ve got nothing to prove,” Sterling continued. “At the end of the day, the name of the game is to go out there and get your hand raised. Win at all costs, and if you have the ability to do it, why not take advantage of it?
“That’s pretty much what I learned, so I’m going to be doing that a lot more often, and not fighting to other people’s strengths to try to prove anything to nobody.
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Who Should TJ Dillashaw Fight?
That is the question on. everyone’s mind as the former bantamweight champ is set to return to action since serving the time in his USADA suspension. He wants to have an immediate title shot, and Aljamain Sterling has already expressed that this is not a good idea.
Aljo doubled down on this again ahead of his UFC 259 title fight. He made it clear that he thinks TJ should have a number one contender fight, against the likes of Cory Sandhagen, to earn another crack at the belt.
“Yeah, I think he has to do something else. In my personal opinion, I think he should be fighting Sandhagen and from there, whoever wins that should get the next shot,” Sterling said.
“I think Sandhagen would probably be the smartest matchup to make, for the division, to keep it progressing, especially with what TJ’s done, even though he’s a cheater.”
How do you think Aljamain Sterling will do against Petr Yan at UFC 259?
