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Aljamain Sterling has responded to Petr Yan’s recent statements wherein the Russian fighter suggested that he could fight TJ Dillashaw next. Sterling has criticized him for wanting to fight Dillashaw and added that the UFC could strip Yan of his newly won title.
In an edition of his podcast, The Weekly Scraps, Aljamain Sterling weighed in on Petr Yan’s win over Cory Sandhagen in their interim UFC bantamweight title fight at UFC 267.
Aljamain Sterling praised both fighters for their respective performances. Nevertheless, ‘Funk Master’ noted that despite Yan holding the interim title, he (Sterling) is still the true champion of the UFC bantamweight division. He also addressed Yan wanting to fight Dillashaw, saying:
“It’s the fight game. We’re gonna fight regardless. At the end of the day, I’m the champ. For Petr Yan to say that he doesn’t want to fight me, I think it’s ridiculous. Let’s be honest, it’s ridiculous unless he doesn’t wanna unify the belts. Then, he’s gonna have to or what? They’re going to strip him [of the interim UFC bantamweight title]. And the irony in that would just be hilarious. But again, I don’t think he’s that crazy. I think this is a very big fight. I think it’s a fight that a lot of people want to see, and they want to remove all doubt. They want to get to the next chapter.”
Aljamain Sterling emphasized that their rematch is significant and has to materialize in order “to make sure the best division in the UFC gets moved along in the right direction.” Sterling indicated that he’d like the UFC bantamweight division to have one champion, be it him or Petr Yan.
You can watch Aljamain Sterling’s explanation in the video below:
When will Aljamain Sterling return to the octagon?
There aren’t many clear-cut title contenders at bantamweight as of this time. Cory Sandhagen is coming off two consecutive losses, while TJ Dillashaw is out of action due to a knee injury.
That said, Petr Yan won the interim bantamweight title at UFC 267 last week and earned the next shot at bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.
Their first fight witnessed Yan lose the belt to Sterling via DQ after the Russian hit ‘Funk Master’ with an illegal knee. Considering the anticlimactic manner in which the fight ended, many have been clamoring for Yan and Sterling to meet in a rematch.
Presently, Aljamain Sterling is recovering from his neck injury issues. He underwent surgery after the first fight against Yan and has been undergoing rehab ever since.
Sterling has consistently maintained that he aims to return to the octagon and rematch Yan in January or February 2022. The exact date and other details regarding their title unification matchup are likely to unravel in the days to come.
