After establishing himself as perhaps the greatest bantamweight of all time, former 135-pound champion Aljamain Sterling made the move to featherweight as a part of the loaded UFC 300 prelims on Saturday night.
Standing in the way of Sterling bagging his first win at 145 was Calvin Kattar, a division mainstay looking to make a statement in his first fight back since suffering a devastating knee injury in the second round of his October 2022 scrap with Arnold Allen.
Round 1
Sterling comes out and immediately puts the pressure on Kattar, targeting the lead leg early. Sterling throws a big overhand right that connects. Sterling goes back to Kattar’s lead leg, but Kattar checks the kick and fires back with a jab. Sterling lands a left hand followed by a right. Kattar takes control of the Octagon, backing up Sterling and cutting him off.
Sterling moves in and grabs a single leg against the fence. Sterling drags Kattar to the canvas. Sterling moves to the waist and keeps Kattar from working his way back up. Kattar pops up, but Sterling quickly returns him to the mat, taking Kattar’s back in the process. Kattar gets back to his feet and breaks away from Sterling, returning to the center of the Octagon.
With 15 seconds to go in the round, Sterling ducks the jab attempt from Kattar and secures another single-leg takedown moments before the horn sounds.
Round 2
Sterling comes out and once again attacks Kattar’s lead leg before closing the distance and moving in for a double leg. Sterling presses Kattar to the fence before dragging him to the mat, eliciting boos from the crowd. Kattar works to break the grip of Sterling. He succeeds, climbing back to his feet, but remaining pressed up against the fence by Sterling’s unrelenting pressure. Sterling offers a few knees to the legs of Kattar, but little else offensively.
Unable to get Kattar back to the mat, Sterling backs away before unleashing a sneaky combination that lands. Seconds later, Sterling shoots and lands a clean double leg in the middle of the Octagon. Sterling maintains control on the ground through the end of the round.
Thus far, Aljamain Sterling has six takedowns while Calvin Kattar only has four significant strikes landed.
Round 3
Seconds into the third round, Sterling snatches a leg and uses it to jump on the back of his opponent. Kattar stays upright and works his way to the fence while attempting to break Sterling’s grip. Sterling inevitably drags Kattar to the mat and secures himself in Kattar’s guard. Sterling works to isolate Kattar’s right arm in an attempt to set up an arm triangle choke. He quickly gives up, moving into side control.
Kattar scrambles and gets back to his feet, but Sterling lifts Kattar and powerbombs him back to the canvas. Sterling unleashes a flurry of ground and pound strikes but is unable to get the finish. Sterling finishes out the round holding top control.
Official Result: Aljamain Sterling def. Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Check Out Highlights From Aljamain Sterling vs. Calvin Kattar at UFC 300:
POWERBOMB 💣
Aljamain Sterling dominates Calvin Kattar en route to a unanimous decision victory in his UFC featherweight debut! 💥#UFC300
— Violent Money TV (@ViolentMoneyTV) April 14, 2024
Looking good in his new weight class 😤@FunkMasterMMA leaves #UFC300 with a UD victory! pic.twitter.com/YsZG0JlfKj
— UFC (@ufc) April 14, 2024
Aljamain Sterling gets the decision victory over Calvin Kattar in his UFC featherweight debut.#UFC300 pic.twitter.com/gYhdyZl0HT
— COMBAT SPORTS TODAY (@CSTodayNews) April 14, 2024
