UFC champion blasts Bellator 294 referee for allowing blows to the back of the head and people supporting him
UFC champion Aljamain Sterling has blasted the Bellator 294 referee who took charge of Tyrell Fortune vs. Sergey Bilostenniy last night, as well as those supporting him, for his poor officiating of the contest.
Chris West, the referee in question, failed to notice a barrage of elbows landed by Bilostenniy that struck the back of Fortune's head. The fight was stopped after one of the elbows dropped Fortune to the ground, and the initial TKO victory for Bilostenniy was overturned to a DQ win for his opponent.
How many illegal shots did Tyrell Fortune take 😬
#Bellator294 | #BellatorHawaii https://t.co/GRF0SXEbE0
A well-known MMA publication, Sherdog.com, released a tweet defending Chris West that irked Sterling enough to respond. Aljamain Sterling called out the Bellator 294 referee as well as anyone who tried to justify his actions, or the lack thereof.
Sterling tweeted:
"What are you watching? The first elbow, in the hurt “finishing” sequence was directly behind the ear, aka the back of the head, aka the beginning of spinal column. People who think like this are sick and want to see someone paralyzed in the ring. Sad."
See the tweet below:
What are you watching? 😑
The first elbow, in the hurt “finishing” sequence was directly behind the ear, aka the back of the head, aka the beginning of spinal column. People who think like this are sick and want to see someone paralyzed in the ring. Sad. twitter.com/sherdogdotcom/…
Aljamain Sterling was on the end of an illegal blow himself when he was struck with a brutal knee to the head by Petr Yan at UFC 259. 'Funk Master' won the bout via DQ and was crowned the new bantamweight champion, a title he has successfully defended ever since.
He will look to defend his title for a third time when he takes on former two-division champion Henry Cejudo next month.
Updated poster for #UFC288 on May 6th.
Headlined by Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo for the UFC bantamweight championship.
#UFC #MMA https://t.co/WGbBVjHuRV
UFC champion Aljamain Sterling doesn't think Henry Cejudo can cope with his grappling control
Aljamain Sterling is set to welcome Henry Cejudo back to the octagon at UFC 288 on May 6. Cejudo will compete for the first time since his retirement in 2020.
Cejudo's wrestling credentials outweigh Sterling's considerably, as 'Triple C' won a gold medal in freestyle wrestling at the 2008 Olympics at just 21 years old as well as multiple U.S. national titles. But despite the stark contrast on paper, Sterling has arguably the most effective grappling game in MMA right now.
The bantamweight champion is a black belt in BJJ and has mastered the art of taking his opponent's back and staying there. 'Funk Master' has deemed himself a 'human backpack' and doesn't believe Cejudo will be able to contend with his control on the ground.
Aljamain Sterling recently uploaded a training vlog of his preparations for UFC 288, and said this:
"Get on his back, I don't think he's gonna know what the f**k [to do]. Like, I know he's drilling it, like showing bits and pieces on training vlogs. But it's like, a one second clip of like, 'We're training back control with a body triangle.' I'm like, 'Guess who also did that? Petr Yan. Guess who also did that? T.J. Dillashaw.' All these guys did that s**t."
Catch Aljamain Sterling's comments below (7:30):