It’s a well-known fact that the UFC rankings are basically just meaningless numbers, and their method for choosing who fights for titles is inconsistent and generally has to do more with who has the biggest name than who has the best resume.
But even so, the situation at bantamweight has been downright goofy. Champion Henry Cejudo abruptly retired from the sport and vacated his title after beating up Dominick Cruz in May, and there appeared to be two names at the top of the list: the fast-rising Siberian savage Petr Yan and New York native Aljamain Sterling, a former All-American wrestler with a funky grappling game.
Dana White had a few months to plan this whole thing out. Yan was an obvious choice for a vacant title fight, especially after he destroyed the legendary Urijah Faber last December. But the other spot didn’t go to Sterling. Nor did it go to top contender Marlon Moraes, who was the last man to beat Sterling but had been knocked out in a recent title fight with Cejudo.
No, White selected former featherweight champion Jose Aldo, a past-his-prime legend who had lost five of his last eight and had actually dropped a decision to Moraes in his bantamweight debut. It was a controversial decision – many, including White, saw Aldo as the winner – but Moraes won the fight nonetheless. Now, Aldo’s jumping the line and fighting for the bantamweight title? It made absolutely zero goddamn sense.
What was even weirder was when Yan knocked Aldo out and Sterling ran through the red-hot Cory Sandhagen in a fight that White himself had described as a title eliminator, the UFC president was still reticent to name Sterling the No. 1 contender. But that apparently changed this week, when White confirmed – although not in completely definite terms – that Sterling was next in line to receive a chance at the bantamweight title.
I genuinely have never understood White’s reluctance to put Sterling in that spot. Sterling has put together an extremely strong run in a deep bantamweight division, winning five in a row against very good competition since the Moraes loss. He’s an engaging personality who loves to talk trash, even though the things he says don’t always make sense and sometimes are bizarrely sexual.
He also helped make UFC 228, in September 2018, one of the most exhilarating nights of my life as an MMA fan. In an undercard fight with tough prospect Cody Stamann, Sterling threatened to tap him out with a FULL NELSON before putting him away with one of the rarest submissions in mixed martial arts, a kneebar from back mount known as the Suloev Stretch.
That inspired featherweight contender Zabit Magomedsharipov to tap out Brandon Davis with ANOTHER Suloev Stretch later that same night. Most fans had probably never heard of that move before – it was named after Amar Suloev, a relatively obscure former UFC light heavyweight and hitman for the Russian mob (seriously, look it up) who innovated the move in a 2002 fight against Paul Cahoon, who is currently wanted by British police for allegedly leading a drug-dealing gang in Liverpool.
This sport fucking kicks ass. And it’s a testament to Sterling’s submission acumen and the unorthodox way his brain works that he would even think to pull that move out against a top 10 opponent on pay-per-view. He kept the momentum afterward too, outpointing contenders Jimmie Rivera and Pedro Munhoz in fights largely contested on the feet, before choking out Sandhagen in less than two minutes.
Sterling is just fun to watch. He’s primarily a ground fighter, using his strong wrestling and an aggressive and inventive submission game, but he also has some quirky and enjoyable striking. He’s longer than most bantamweights, and he uses his reach well, using kicks to control the range and set up the takedown. When he gets comfortable, as he did against Rivera and Munhoz, he’ll start throwing spinning backfists and ducking down and tossing uppercut elbows. Nothing he does look typical, and he should not be counted out on the feet.
Booking a Yan-Sterling fight makes all the sense in the world in that not only does it reward a top contender on a hot run, but it also provides a truly meaningful test to a young champion who looks to be the new cornerstone of the division. Yan hasn’t faced anyone as adept or dangerous on the ground as Sterling, and Sterling’s unique style and tendency to do the things you least expect should really challenge him.
I’m excited to see it happen. Hopefully, it actually does.
The Big Fight 