Aljamain Sterling shares bold prediction for potential Sean O'Malley rematch - "I would bet my life savings"
Aljamain Sterling recently expressed his thoughts about facing Sean O'Malley in a potential rematch. Sterling seemed rather optimistic when it came to his chances of defeating the current UFC bantamweight champion.
Many people believe that Sterling is the best bantamweight fighter of all time. Numerous divisional records are held by 'Funk Master', including the longest win streak, the most wins, the most control time, the most total strikes, and the most consecutive title defenses.
At UFC 292, Sterling lost by second-round TKO to O'Malley, ending his nine-fight winning streak and bringing an end to his bantamweight title reign. It was the fighter's first defeat in almost six years.
In a recent episode of Overdogs podcast on Kanpai Media's YouTube channel, the former UFC bantamweight champion discussed his prospects of facing O'Malley in a rematch and said:
''O'Malley showed up that night, it was an off-night for myself and the better man won that night. But I do know if I had a rematch and as long as he waited from August to fighting Chito in March, you give me that time to recover, prepare and to cut my weight the proper way. In a rematch, I would bet my life savings on that."
Check out Aljamain Sterling's comments below:
After his defeat, Sterling completely switched divisions and made the decision to go up in weight. He took part in UFC 300 on April 13 and grabbed a win over a ranked featherweight in the process. In a bout that featured a lot of grappling, the 34-year-old defeated Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision.
Additionally, Sterling's next bout remains unconfirmed, despite the fact that he appears to be pursuing a higher-ranked opponent at 145 pounds.
What's next for Aljamain Sterling?
Aljamain Sterling is determined to progress through the featherweight division and claim UFC gold, with the goal of becoming the 10th fighter in UFC history to hold a title in two divisions. Although Sterling stated that he would prefer to fight Brian Ortega next, the proposed bout is far from finalized.
At UFC 300 post-fight press conference, Sterling expressed his desire to face Ortega next because of their grappling-heavy approaches, saying:
''Give me the next best guy. I'll take Brian Ortega respectfully.''
In response to Sterling's callout, Ortega said he had to speak with his manager first.
''I am aware of the callouts and the options. It's time for my manager to do his thing.''
Check out Brian Ortega's response to Aljamain Sterling's callout below: