Aljamain Sterling Says Gold and Legacy Matter More Than Money
Aljamain Sterling said he is still a prizefighter, but the paycheck is no longer the point of the last stretch of his career. He wants gold again.
The former UFC bantamweight champion said it on The AH Show while promoting a featherweight co-main event against Kevin Vallejos at UFC Qatar on November 21. The graphic on the interview listed the bout as the co-main of the Doha card.
“At the end of the day, I am a prize fighter,” Sterling said. “I am here fighting for money.”
He immediately pulled that line back. He said he is not hurting for cash and that his investments have already done the job.
“I’ve done a very good job with my investments and things like that,” he said. “This is icing on the cake.” The real target, he said, is another title run. He framed it as legacy work that most fighters never get to finish.
“The main goal for me, and I expressed this a hundred, was fighting for gold,” Sterling said. “Again, fighting for legacy and trying to do something that’s been so hard for many people to do.”
That is the version of Sterling who moved up after losing the 135-pound belt to Sean O’Malley. He is 26-5 overall and 3-1 at featherweight, with wins over Calvin Kattar, Brian Ortega, and Youssef Zalal. The lone 145-pound loss was a decision to Movsar Evloev.
He is ranked No. 4. Vallejos is 18-1, 24 years old, and 4-0 in the UFC after stoppages of Giga Chikadze and Josh Emmett. Rankings have the Argentine around No. 9 or No. 10.
Sterling knows some fans will call that a step down. He did not ask for their permission.
“And if people can’t respect that, then suck balls,” he said. “I ain’t got nothing else for you, but don’t tell me I can’t do something because you can’t.”
He compared the moment to an earlier chapter of his own climb. He said the Vallejos booking reminded him of himself and Cory Sandhagen, the fight he finished in the first round at UFC 250 before the title run.
“I’ve been in this position before,” Sterling said. “I think the storm is coming, and I’m gonna shock the world again.”
He left no soft landing if the shock never arrives.
“And if I don’t, I’m gonna die trying,” he said. “So that’s the mentality going to this one.”
He also explained why he took this opponent instead of waiting for a bigger name. He said he has already been in Merab Dvalishvili’s camp and that a flashier win still might not buy a title shot.
“Maybe I could have gotten a bigger name,” Sterling said. “But I don’t know, those wins get me a title shot per se.”
He pointed at recent featherweight traffic as the blueprint. He said Lerone Murphy knocked out Aaron Pico and still had to fight Evloev. He said Evloev beat the names in front of him and still had to take one more.
“It seems it’s more about the performance than anything, and if the fans get behind you,” Sterling said.
That is the ask he made next. He told fans that if he styles on Vallejos, they need to get loud and put the battery on his back.
The division’s actual belt is still with Alexander Volkanovski. Evloev is booked to challenge him at UFC 333 on October 24 in Abu Dhabi, a month before Qatar. Sterling did not claim the winner owes him the next date. He said performance and public support decide that more than a résumé line.
UFC Qatar is set for November 21 at Ali Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah Arena in Doha, with Jiri Prochazka vs. Navajo Stirling in the main event. Sterling vs. Vallejos is the featherweight co-main.
Sterling closed the interview the same way he opened it. Money is fine. The chase is the job.
“I’m chasing greatness,” he said. “And I’m gonna do that damn thing again.”
