Aljamain Sterling reflects on title loss to Sean O’Malley – “All feels like a bad, bad dream”
Aljamain Sterling is still processing his title loss against Sean O’Malley at UFC 292. The ‘Funk Master’ recently reacted to Alexander Volkanovski’s statement regarding the outcome of Sterling vs. O’Malley and claimed the loss still felt like a nightmare.
O’Malley defeated Sterling via second-round knockout to claim the 135-pound title and end the ‘Funk Master’s incredible nine-fight unbeaten streak. It’s well-known that Sterling intended to move up to the featherweight division and face ‘The Great’ after his fourth title defense.
Unfortunately, in light of how the former bantamweight champion lost his title, Volkanovski recently dismissed that possibility. The featherweight king also pointed out that if Aljamain Sterling had won, he could’ve replaced Ilia Topuria as his next opponent.
Reacting to a Twitter post quoting Alexander Volkanovski from a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Aljamain Sterling wrote:
“This all still feels like a bad, bad dream. Unfortunately, it’s not. This sport is really something…. I’m just gonna let it fuel me. I’ll be back.”
In the aftermath of UFC 292, Sterling expressed his desire for an immediate rematch. Given how Sean O’Malley managed to secure a knockout victory, Sterling also admitted he wasn’t prepared to face a champion as dominant as Volkanovski. With ‘Suga’ calling for a rematch against Marlon Vera, it remains to be seen who the ‘Funk Master’ fights next.
Aljamain Sterling on the one mistake that cost him the fight against Sean O’Malley at UFC 292
Aljamain Sterling is undoubtedly among the greatest bantamweight champions the UFC has ever seen. With the most wins, most consecutive title defenses, and longest win streak in divisional history, the ‘Funk Master’ is the most dominant 135-pound champion ever.
Unfortunately, even the best stumble. In the second round of his fight against Sean O’Malley, Sterling shot an overextended left hand. However, ‘Suga’ saw it coming and countered with a hard right that sent Sterling crashing to the canvas. A follow-up barrage of shots by O’Malley forced the referee to step in and end the contest at round two’s 51-second mark.
In the UFC 292 post-fight presser, Aljamain Sterling remained humble in defeat. Outlining the one mistake he shouldn’t have made, the ‘Funk Master’ said:
“He stayed disciplined to his game plan, and I kind of let trying to be a little bit more of an exciting style for the fans play a factor. We’ve seen the [Israel Adesanya]-Yoel Romero fight. We’ve seen bad fights before, where it’s like not much happens because no one wants to make that grave mistake. I made the mistake, Sean capitalized. I paid for it.”
Watch the full video below:
