"Somewhat of a coping mechanism" - Michael Chiesa on Aljamain Sterling harping on first fight against Petr Yan

Michael Chiesa (left), Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling (right) [Images courtesy of Getty]

Michael Chiesa recently shared his thoughts on Aljamain Sterling's mindset ahead of his rematch against Petr Yan at UFC 273 this weekend. Chiesa believes Sterling is still harping too much about the first fight as a coping mechanism for the heat he has received from fans for the contest at UFC 259.

Sterling earned a disqualification win and became the bantamweight champion after Yan landed an illegal knee in the fight. However, 'Funkmaster' has been the subject of constant backlash from fans as they believe he made the most of the situation.

While giving his take on the same during the UFC 273 preview show with Paul Felder, Chiesa said:

"I think that Aljo is, this is kind of a bold thing for me to say, but I think it's somewhat of a coping mechanism, Paul [Felder]. I think for him to continually harp on what happened in their first fight, and make the skit and do all those types of things, I feel like it's a coping mechanism because of how much flak he deals with from the fans."

Watch Michael Chiesa talk to Paul Felder on the UFC Round-Up show below:

Petr Yan is the favorite to beat Aljamain Sterling at UFC 273

Petr Yan currently holds the UFC interim bantamweight championship and is the favorite to regain the undisputed belt at UFC 273. 'No Mercy' earned a win against Cory Sandhagen at UFC 267 in his last fight.

Undisputed UFC bantamweight champion

Meanwhile, Sterling hasn't fought since UFC 259. However, the champion is back in his camp and has been working with the likes of Ray Longo and Matt Serra.

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Despite receiving constant criticism from fans, Aljamain Sterling remains one of the top fighters in the UFC's bantamweight division. He is a phenomenal grappler and will look to impose his skillset at UFC 273.

Meanwhile, Yan is a crafty striker with sniper-like accuracy and tremendous power. He also managed to score seven takedowns on Sterling during their first fight at UFC 259.

Aljamain Sterling had a strong start to the contest when the two first met in the octagon. However, the Russian started to take over as the fight went on before eventually landing the illegal shot. It will be interesting to see how the rematch plays out this weekend at UFC 273.