Henry Cejudo issues apology to Aljamain Sterling for saying he was acting after illegal knee from Petr Yan
Henry Cejudo has issued an apology to Aljamain Sterling for saying that he was acting after receiving an illegal knee from Petr Yan.
Aljamain Sterling was attempting a takedown on Petr Yan in the fourth round of their UFC Bantamweight title fight at UFC 259. The Funk Master had one knee on the mat, making him a downed opponent when Yan landed a huge knee to his head.
The fight was waved off and Aljamain Sterling was awarded the UFC Bantamweight title via DQ (disqualification). Following this, former UFC Flyweight and Bantamweight Champion, Henry Cejudo, took to Twitter and put forth multiple tweets against Sterling, Petr Yan, and TJ Dillashaw as well.
Most notably, Henry Cejudo accused Aljamain Sterling of pretending as though the illegal knee legitimately hurt him to the extent that he couldn’t continue and thereby securing the DQ win. Nevertheless, Triple C has now taken to Twitter and issued an apology to Sterling. Cejudo tweeted out a video.
“He (Aljamain Sterling) eventually ended up getting hit with an illegal knee and that was that. I do wanna apologize to Aljamain. I really do – Because I was a little upset, little mad. But at the same time, I was more mad at the fact that he ended up doing the interview and the tweets. And I saw the pictures with him with the belt, and I’m just like, man, it just rubbed me the wrong (way). But at the end of the day, it was an illegal strike by Petr the ugly potato Yan. So, for that reason, you know, that’s just the way the fight goes.”
“They're gonna have a rematch. I don’t think it’s gonna change, man,” Henry Cejudo said, suggesting that the rematch between Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling would see Yan once again dominate the fight. Cejudo added, “And I think if I was to tell Aljamain, ‘You know, forget all that volume, and you know what, just focus on those big, one strikes, man. Try to get through Petr Yan, Petr the ugly potato Yan this time.”
“So, I wanna apologize to him (Aljamain Sterling) by some of my tweets because I was just a little upset by it. But, you know, that’s the name of the game,” said Cejudo. (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Moreover, Henry Cejudo insinuated that Aljamain Sterling ought to pace himself better in a five-round fight. Triple C explained that The Funk Master fought his five-round UFC Bantamweight Title fight at UFC 259 as though it was a three-round contest.
The former double champion indicated that hastily pursuing the finish against a tough fighter like Yan usually doesn't work out well. Cejudo harked back to Aljamain Sterling’s unanimous decision to win in a three-round fight against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 238 in June 2019.
He pointed out that Aljamain Sterling fought Petr Yan the same way he locked horns with Munhoz in the three-round bout. Cejudo alluded that this was the reason behind Sterling slowing down against Yan before the fight was waved off late in round four due to the illegal knee.
Henry Cejudo and the Aljamain Sterling vs. Petr Yan rematch
Henry Cejudo opined that the rematch between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan would be similar to their UFC 259 matchup, with the Russian getting the better of The Funk Master for most of the fight.
Many in the MMA community agree with Triple C's opinion and feel that the former Bantamweight Champion will dominate the second fight as well. An immediate rematch between Sterling and Yan seems to be on the cards and is likely to transpire later this year.