Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan at UFC 273 faceoff (Credits: MMA Junkie)
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling spoke on his Youtube channel about his rematch against Petr Yan, and why he could not submit the Russian
Aljamain Sterling shocked the world, especially in rounds two and three, when he completely dominated his opponent Petr Yan who was the favorite to win the fight. During their first encounter, Sterling had radically faded after some initial success which gave Yan the bandwidth to dictate the fight.
At UFC 273, Sterling was at the top of his game, and was rarely in trouble for the entirety of the fight. Fans and MMA analysts started questioning after the fight as to why Sterling could not submit Yan when he was on his back for almost half the round.
Sterling answered to this on his Youtube channel by blaming Yan for using water to avoid grappling exchanges. He said, “Can we talk about how much water he was pouring on his head though? Because he was really, really slippery after that. And made those other takedowns a lot harder for me to grab on his waist. And I really do think that’s why I fell off in the fourth round.”
Although he won the fight, a finish against the Russian would have been the statement he intended to make.
Aljamain Sterling’s performance at UFC 273 against former champion Petr Yan sure turned a few heads, which solidified his claim as the bantamweight champion. One of the most trusted referees and analysts Big John McCarthy was amongst the many who scored the fight to Yan.
John alongside UFC President Dana White were among the some who scored the tie otherwise. Sterling was particularly miffed at these comments and reacted by saying, “There is absolutely no way you could score that round like ‘Big’ John McCarthy. Dude, go get a clue. I don’t know how this guy was ever the blueprint standard of the MMA. Cause that guy scks, his opinion stinks and it scks. He just says sh*t. And I think he just wants people to think that he knows what he’s talking about.”
Big John was quick to respond to this on Twitter and suggested that if Sterling truly believes he won the fight he shouldn’t be too bothered with what other people have to say. He also suggested that as a champion now he should stop calling names and be a sport. He said, “Alright [Funk Master] I see that what I say causes you great distress. The fact that I don’t agree on a single round should not effect or impact your life in anyway. I said you fought a great fight and you did, congratulations. Name calling…really, champions are above that.”
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