UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling knows that his torn bicep might keep him out of competition, but the “Funk Master” remains optimistic. Sterling wants to defend his title against Henry Cejudo at UFC 285 in March, and discussed a potential recovery timeline on a recent episode of The MMA Hour.
“I think it’s a possibility,” Sterling said. “My weight’s coming down. I was 165 this morning. And again, I’m not training every day, so that weight could come down relatively quick once I get clearance to use my arm, and actually be able to wrestle and things like that.
Sterling “Optimistic” For UFC 285
“[UFC 285 is] a monster card,” he continued. “I would love to [be on it]. So there’s a bunch of enticing things. That’s why I’m trying my best to make sure I could get to the fight. And if I can, I will. And if I can’t, let’s just give me some time to see where everything is at.
“I think we’re going to find out this week. I’m very optimistic about it.” Sterling also discussed his potential opponent, the “corny” former two-division champ, Henry Cejudo, and couldn’t resist a jab at his latest opponent, another former champion, T.J. Dillashaw.
“Henry might be corny, and I don’t mind corny. Corny is kind of funny because it’s different and it’s not like everyone trying to be, ‘Oh, I’m cool.’ So I get Henry. I get it him, I understand him. But don’t let that fool you. The guy is a legitimate athlete, a legitimate fighter, and he’s dangerous — and I want to make sure if I’m going to fight a guy like that and risk it again, that I’m going to do it [right]. And if I lose, I lose. I don’t want to have excuses like, ‘Oh, well, I fought injured,’ and have like this built-in excuse.
I’m not going to go the T.J. [Dillashaw] route. I’m not going do all these things. If I have a good training camp and I can fight and I can compete in the room, I should be able to theoretically compete under the lights, and that’s the risk that we take. None of us go into these fights 100 percent, and I’ve got to make sure if I’m going to do it, the juice has got to be worth the squeeze. That’s pretty much where I’m at.”
Do you think we’ll see Aljamain Sterling deliver another title defense at UFC 285? Let us know in the comments.
