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Aljamain Sterling has revealed he turned down a UFC fight offer because he didn’t see the benefit of taking it.
Sterling, a former UFC Bantamweight Champion, is currently the No. 4-ranked featherweight on both the Meta and media rankings panels. While “The Funk Master” was hoping to get a top five opponent to get closer to a title fight at 145 pounds, he was instead offered someone who isn’t in the top 10.
In a new YouTube video, Sterling explained why he didn’t think the bout made sense.
“I think this is the first fight I ever turned down in my UFC career,” Sterling said. “I was offered a fight that was outside of the top 10, and I felt like it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. I am ranked fourth in the world right now. I am 37. I only got one more shot at this, and I want to make sure it’s the best shot that I get, and if I’m gonna risk it, I want to make sure I’m risking it for something that makes sense.”
Sterling senses that there will be some blowback from fans over turning down a fight, but he feels justified in his decision.
“Some people could say, ‘Oh, you can’t think like that.’ Dude, you’ve got to look at the positives and the negatives,” Sterling said. “If I were to win, what does that get me? Probably nowhere. I’m in the same exact position. I’m just fighting for a paycheck, but if I were to lose, it puts me down a heck of a lot more spots than I probably should be.”
In his most recent bout back in April, Sterling snapped Youssef Zalal’s eight-fight winning streak with a unanimous decision win. The victory made it two in a row for the 31-fight veteran, who had beaten Brian Ortega in 2025.
Do you think Aljamain Sterling made the right call turning down a fighter outside of the top 10, or should he have taken the offer? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM
