Aljamain Sterling highlights his respect for Petr Yan while slamming Movsar Evloev: "I’m breaking balls"

Aljamain Sterling has rarely engaged in pre-fight trash talk throughout his career but has increased that part of himself ahead of his bout with Movsar Evloev at UFC 307. Sterling has made his distaste for Evloev clear, bringing up his biggest rival to date as evidence.

'The Funk Master' responded to a fan who claimed he was "hating" on Petr Yan, whom Sterling fought twice for the UFC bantamweight title. The 35-year-old clarified that he was just "breaking balls" and likes Yan "more than Movsar."

Sterling tweeted:

"I'm breaking balls. I like Yan when we aren't signed to fight each other. Definitely like him more than Movsar."

Sterling and Evloev have gone back and forth on social media even before their fight was announced, an uncharacteristic approach for both men. The featherweights also seem to agree that their bout will be a title eliminator, though Dana White has not given that confirmation.

Since moving up to the featherweight division after his reign as the bantamweight champion came to an end, Sterling is just 1-0 thus far with a dominant win over Calvin Kattar at UFC 300.

Movsar Evloev responds to Aljamain Sterling's tweet

Unsurprisingly, it did not take Movsar Evloev very long to respond to Aljamain Sterling's quip. The Russian snapped back in defense, accusing Sterling of "acting" to win the UFC bantamweight title at UFC 259:

"You stole his title by acting"

Aljamain Sterling's title victory is one of the most disputed of all time with Petr Yan losing the belt by disqualification. While Yan's strike, a knee to the head of a downed Sterling, was undeniably illegal, fans dumped the challenger with heaps of criticism due to the anticlimactic ending.

The UFC 307 bout order has yet to be finalized, but Sterling and Evloev are currently expected to be on the preliminary portion of the card. UFC 307 is scheduled for Oct. 5 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.