The UFC’s bantamweight champion is not a fan of Big John McCarthy.
Aljamain Sterling is on a warpath against people who doubted him against Petr Yan this past weekend at UFC 273. He also questions people who had the fight scored for Yan. Unfortunately, one of those people is former MMA referee turned Bellator commentator McCarthy.
What ‘Big’ John Said
On McCarthy’s podcast ‘Weighing In,’ he said he was impressed with how Sterling fought but then said, “there is no way he won that first round.”
Sterling Reacts
While he isn’t the only person who thought Sterling lost the first round, Sterling let McCarthy have it on The MMA Hour on Wednesday.
“So for people [who said] ‘there is absolutely no way you can score that round [for me]’ (John McCarthy voice). Dude, go get a clue. I don’t know how the guy was ever the blue print standard of MMA, because that guy sucks,” Sterling said.
“His opinions stink and suck. He just says shit and I just think he wants people to think that he knows that he’s talking about. I think he had a MMA school, I think he had fighters, which one of them ever did anything, what did his school ever do? Because clearly, this guy is so great, right? So, what has he ever accomplished, other than trying to judge people and being completely wrong about the scoring criteria of the fight.”
That wasn’t all. Sterling had more ammunition for the retired referee.
“If you want an opinion, have an opinion, John. It’s okay but it doesn’t mean you’re correct because you’re not going by the criteria of how you score a fight. So, please just be quiet and let the big boys do what they do at a high level – something you’ve never been able to accomplish. Relax there, buddy.”
Shots fired.
The first round of Yan vs. Sterling II will be dissected for the next year, and everyone will have an opinion on it because that is the round that won the fight for Sterling.
Nevertheless, Sterling is gunning for a fight with former champion T.J. Dillashaw next, so Yan will have a while to think about the trilogy.
Oh, and if you’re one of the people who doubted Sterling, he released a form for you to fill out.
