Aljamain Sterling has declared he’s next in line for a crack at UFC featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski after stringing together back-to-back wins in the division.
The former bantamweight champ looked back to his best over the weekend, headlining Saturday’s UFC Vegas 116 card with a statement win against Youssef Zalal.
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‘Funk Master’ snapped the Moroccan’s nine-fight unbeaten run in the UFC – and wasted no time setting his sights on Windang’s finest.
“Volkanovski, you know I’m coming for that a** next!” he told Daniel Cormier.
Why Sterling believes he deserves the next shot
While many see unbeaten contender Movsar Evloev as the rightful next man to take on Volkanovski, Sterling insists he’s got a bigger name.
“I should fight Volkanovski next because I am the best name in the division right now,” Sterling told Din Thomas on Monday.
“Yeah, there’s an undefeated prospect out there, but we’re not talking about him, we’re talking about me.
“A lot of people thought I won that fight; I still believe I won that fight. If it was that razor close, I think I’m just as deserving of a title shot as that guy is.
“I think my performances overall have been better than his and we’re two OGs of the sport.
Why not get the legends vs. legends out of the way?
“This is a fight you can build, you can make sick promos for.”
Sterling reigned as bantamweight champ from March 2021 to August 2023, stacking up wins over big names like Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw and Henry Cejudo.
“I’ve got the most title defenses in the bantamweight division, I’m here at featherweight now,” he said.
“I think this one really solidifies to the world that I am one of the best guys in the world, and I can still get it done. So, give me my damn title shot.”
Sterling also believes he’s a more exciting fighter than Evloev – who still hasn’t got a single finish in the UFC.
“Who doesn’t want to see Volkanovski versus the ‘Funkmaster’? What are we talking about? What do we have to do to give the people what they want?” Sterling told The Ariel Helwani Show on Tuesday.
“Two OGs, two legends of their weight classes. Now I’m in a new one, trying to be a two-division champion against one of the all-time greats before he hangs it up.
“I think I more than deserved and earned my shot. With that said, Movsar vs. Lerone Murphy – I don’t think anyone is clamoring for watching that winner fight Volkanovski.
“So, give the fans something that they want to do. Give a compelling matchup. The storyline is there. We’ve trained together. It’s a great matchup. Styles make fights. And I don’t think these guys have anything for him.
“’Volk’ is just that damn good still. I guarantee if you give me the opportunity, I will figure out the puzzle or I will die trying to do it.”
Why he thinks he can trouble Volk
Volk would likely enter as favourite, but Sterling believes his grappling presents a unique challenge – even compared to Dagestani boogeyman Islam Makhachev.
“When he fought Islam, Islam had his back,” Sterling said during a backstage interview with UFC News.
“And you saw when I had Youssef’s back. When I fought Movsar, I had his back but he did something really smart – he held my hands and didn’t give me the opportunity to open up and strike.
“I think that’s the difference. Volkanovski, when he got his back taken by Islam in that first fight, he was the one doing damage from having his back taken.
“That’s the difference between a guy like that and a guy like me,” he continued. “It’s just a different skill set.
“I’m not disrespecting Islam. I just bring a different problem, a different set of skills.”
Deep end debut for Bobby Knuckles?
Elsewhere, UFC commentator Brendan Fitzgerald wants to see Aussie star Robert Whittaker thrown straight into the fire in his light heavyweight debut.
After years battling the best at middleweight, “The Reaper” is preparing for his first outing at 205 pounds, with no opponent yet confirmed.
Fitzgerald says Khalil Rountree Jr. is the fight to make.
“The name I circled is Khalil Rountree Jr. at No. 5,” Fitzgerald told MMA Junkie.
“Is that too high on his entry into the division? But in terms of the matchup, former middleweight Khalil Rountree who has had success at 205, and Robert Whittaker is a big name still and a former champ.
“Part of carrying the market for us in Australia for a while and in the name of International Fight Week, let’s go Australia on the card against Khalil Rountree Jr.”
The light heavyweight division is a bit of a mess right now, with champion Carlos Ulberg out with an ACL injury and several top contenders unavailable.
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A showdown between Whittaker and Rountree would definitely make things exciting.
“It injects some life into the division,” Fitzgerald said.
“Ulberg has the knee injury now and we’ll see what’s going to happen at 205, but the fact Rountree is a former middleweight, as well (makes it a good fight).”