When Aljamin Sterling defeated Petr Yan via decision, former UFC Brendan Schaub was shocked to see UFC president Dana White disagree with the judges. White told the post-fight press conference that the judges “got that one wrong”, which Schaub said “f***ed Aljamain Sterling over”.
“When you’re the president of the UFC, you have a responsibility. So when you say the judges got that one wrong, now you f***** Aljamain Sterling over. Now you f***** him.
Brendan Schaub: How Dana White “f***** Aljamain Sterling over”
Because he beat the naysayers, he beat the haters, he shut everybody up. But now it resurfaces because the most powerful man in the UFC says, ‘He didn’t win that fight.’ Which, you don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re wrong, dude.”
Aljamain Sterling’s first title win was controversial enough. He earned the UFC bantamweight strap when Petr Yan disqualified himself by landing an illegal knee to the grounded Sterling’s head. In the aftermath of that fight, Sterling dealt with ongoing criticism not only from Yan and his supporters, but various media outlets and MMA fans who felt that he had faked his reaction to the illegal shot.
The rematch, although it was a close, gruelling fight that lasted five rounds, also went Sterling’s way. After Sterling clearly won rounds two and three, and Petr Yan won rounds four and five, it came down to who took out the first round, and in the end that decision went to the defending champ.
Instead of lauding Sterling, says Schaub, Dana White chose to put his bantamweight champ through more controversy and scrutiny. “You f***** your fighter over.
Now, he has to go back to the drawing board and deal with more of this stupid f****** hate. And why? Because he won three out of five [rounds]?
But you watch it from cageside on the little monitor, and you rush to judgement before watching it for a second or third time. It should be your f****** responsibility, your duty, should be to make sure if you say that stuff that you’re going based off the criteria that the fighters have to go off of when it comes to judging.
But you don’t. You came to a quick judgement, and it f***** your fighter. It f**** your champion. Because that’s out there.”
Do you think Dana White was in the wrong, and that he did his bantamweight champion a huge disservice? Let us know what you think in the comments.
