"You're not gonna make it out of that fight"– Chael Sonnen warns Aljamain Sterling against the one mistake that may cost him his title against "dirty, rotten cagefighter" T.J. Dillashaw

Chael Sonnen has warned reigning bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling about the one mistake that could cost him his UFC title against T.J. Dillashaw. Sterling is scheduled to defend his belt against former bantamweight champion Dillashaw at UFC 280 on October 22.

In a video posted to Henry Cejudo's official YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen highlighted that Dillashaw thrives in adversity and can't be counted out even if he's losing a fight. During his conversation with former two-division UFC champion Cejudo, Sonnen indicated that Dillashaw can be a bully inside the octagon. 'The Bad Guy' stated:

"You see this very pretty-looking guy. No, he [Dillashaw] is a dirty, rotten cagefighter, Henry. And I do think that's relevant."

Additionally, Chael Sonnen harked back to Aljamain Sterling's split decision win in his rematch against Petr Yan in April. He insinuated that while Sterling built a comfortable lead on the judges' scorecards in the first three rounds, him cruising through the final two rounds almost cost him the fight.

Sonnen cautioned Sterling against making the same mistake against Dillashaw. Moreover, he recalled Leon Edwards' last minute KO of Kamaru Usman in their rematch- a fight that Usman was winning before he got flatlined. Warning that Sterling could suffer a similar fate if he coasts against Dillashaw, Sonnen said:

"You cannot throw a minute away, let alone 10! That was a bad sign in 'Aljo'. I hope he learned his lesson from that. You get the championship and preserve it...You go beat T.J. all you want, you give T.J. Dillashaw 10 minutes, you're not gonna make it out of that fight."

Watch Sonnen discuss the topic at 3:34 in the video below:

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Chael Sonnen foresees Aljamain Sterling benefitting from T.J. Dillashaw's layoffs

Speaking to Henry Cejudo, Chael Sonnen acknowledged the danger T.J. Dillashaw poses to Aljamain Sterling. Regardless, Sonnen picked the 33-year-old Sterling to beat the 36-year-old Dillashaw.

The former UFC middleweight alluded to the fact that Dillashaw was on a two-year hiatus after a steroid use suspension in 2019, competed just once in 2021, and hasn't fought since due to injury issues.

'The Bad Guy' believes that Aljamain Sterling, who's been the more active fighter of the two, will have a significant advantage over T.J. Dillashaw. Predicting a Sterling victory due to Dillashaw's ring-rust, Sonnen explained:

"I think that 'Aljo' is going to win this fight. I think the layoff and then an accidental layoff because of what I believe was a shoulder injury with T.J. -- I think it's too much to ask of a man that's 38-years-old."