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Khabib Nurmagomedov's cousin Abubakar has taken a sharp dig at recently crowned UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.
At the recently concluded UFC 259 pay-per-view, Petr Yan's illegal knee on a grounded Aljamain Sterling cost the Russian his bantamweight title. The knee connected flush on Sterling's face which rendered him unfit to continue and he was handed the title via DQ.
According to Abubakar Nurmagomedov's latest tweet, Aljamain Sterling was playing up his injury to get the DQ win in a fight he was obviously losing. The Dagestani fighter might also have alluded to how Sterling was seen partying with his friends and family, celebrating the title win in contrast to his emotional reaction after the fight.
Sterling's celebrations drew flak from several fans and fighters, including his most recent opponent and former champion Petr Yan.
Sterling initially broke down into tears following the announcement of his victory. He left the title inside the octagon and told Joe Rogan in the post-fight interview that he didn't want to become champion this way. Sterling said he would grant Yan a rematch, and they'd go to battle again.
Is the rematch next for Aljamain Sterling?
However, 'Funkmaster' has since changed his tune. He is now gunning for a title defense against former champion Henry Cejudo instead of Petr Yan. He even urged UFC president Dana White to book a fight between him and Cejudo for the title.
However, it seems unlikely that the UFC will allow Sterling to fight anyone else before running it back with Yan because of the unusual manner in which the championship changed hands. Aljamain Sterling is the first fighter in UFC history to win a title by DQ because of an illegal strike.
Before he was hit with an illegal knee, Sterling was visibly exhausted and was getting lit up by the champion. Yan was clearly winning on the judges' scorecards and it's only fair to give the Russian another shot at the title he inadvertently lost.
