“I will probably move up”- Aljamain Sterling reveals plans of moving up in weight to avoid fighting teammate Merab Dvalishili for the title
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(Left) Merab with Aljamain preparing for his first Title defence (right) Merab Celebrates with Sterling after he was handed the title via disqualification
Aljamain Sterling recently turned the tide on the Bantamweight division when he managed to cling on to an upset victory during his much-awaited rematch against Petr Yan and UFC 273. Many who were considering Yan to be the uncrowned champ were dumbfounded as Aljamaian comfortably bagged the early rounds of their rematch leaving a lot of bettors in perpetual insecurity about the way betting odds work in MMA.
While the victory does offer Sterling a chance to prove himself as a worthy champion in the division, it does open up other holes in his long-term career, the most glaring one being his teammate who is quickly climbing up the rankings, #6 ranked Georgian, Merab Dvalishvili. Aljamain Sterling and Dvalishvili have been long time training partners at the Serra-Longo Fight Team and have been in each other’s corners for most of their fights in the UFC
While friendship or sharing the same team as a champion has been the case with few contenders in the past not all go down the same road, notable examples beings the relationship between former teammates Jon Jones and Rashad Evans souring after their but was scheduled or it could go down the road that Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns took when they were scheduled to fight each other, with Gilbert moving out of the gym briefly for the title fight and has been recently seen sparring with Usman again.
Aljamain Sterling hints move to featherweight might be sooner than expected
Sterling however has expressed his willingness to avoid this confusion and conflict altogether and simply move up a division as his friend contends for the title. On Twitter, while calling out all the top contenders of the division, Sterling declared that everyone was petrified of their style of fighting and that Merab and him will rule the division for years to come. At this point, a fan rightly asked What happens in a bout between Merab and Sterling, something that the Champ replied to.
“After Merab’s next win, I will probably have to move up,” said the Bantamweight champion hinting that a move up to featherweight was right around the horizon. He stated his reason as his teammate is the only worthy contender, he said, ” (I will)allow him his chance that he earned, to make history for Georgia, to win a world title. We will figure it out.”
Dvalishvili shined in his latest performance against Marlon Moraes where he got rocked in the first round to come back and finish Moraes in the early minutes of the second. Sterling meanwhile is rumored to be preparing for a title defense against former Champion, TJ Dillashaw.
Also Read: Watch: Aljamain Sterling reveals his secret trick to defend against takedowns
Also Read: “Doesn’t pack a punch”- TJ Dillashaw dismisses Aljamain Sterling as a threat in a potential fight
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Jerin Mathew
(713 Articles Published)