Aljamain Sterling showed he still has plenty left in the tank on Saturday night. | Getty/UFCAljamain Sterling has no desire to hang around beyond his expiration date in mixed martial arts. That’s why the former bantamweight champion was willing to look at his career realistically had he fallen flat against Youssef Zalal in the UFC Vegas 116 headliner. Instead, “The Funk Master” was in peak form as he overwhelmed his foe with agressive striking on the feet and dominant grappling on the mat en route to a unanimous decision triumph. “I’m not going to lie to you, definitely thoughts of retirement and things like that crossed my mind. Depending on how I lost, if I were to lose, and just being realistic,” Sterling said on the post-fight show. “If I can’t compete, I don’t want to do this anymore. It’s not that I don’t want to do it because there’s no future for it. It’s just if I can’t compete with these young guys, why are you sticking around just taking an ass whooping for no reason?” Zalal entered Saturday’s card with plenty of momentum. His eight-fight winning streak included five victories in the UFC, and “The Moroccan Devil” had dispatched veterans Calvin Kattar and Josh Emmett in his last two Octagon appearances. Sterling would’ve been his most significant victory to date, but Zalal learned he still has some work to do to reach that level. “Is it a passing of the torch type of fight?. I was just happy I was able to pass the test with flying colors,” Sterling said. “I’m not sticking around — I’ve got enough money, could always use a little bit more though — but it’s just one of those things. This sport hurts. Ain’t nobody looking to stick around and let these young bucks just beat you up.”
Sterling is now 3-1 since moving up to 145 pounds. He likes the idea of a championship showdown with fellow veteran Alexander Volkanovski, but he also admits that Evloev is the most deserving featherweight contender at this point in time. “I do think Movsar deserves it but if they offered me the opportunity, I’m not going to say no,” Sterling said. “I’m not going to say this guy deserves it. If they offer it to me, hell yeah, I’m f—ing taking it. “I’m going to give it everything I’ve got until the wheels fall off. I think it’s a fight (vs. Volkanovski) that everybody would love to see. Two OG’s of the sport. Why not? It just makes a whole lot of sense.” Sterling dropped a unanimous decision to Evloev at UFC 310 in December 2024. It was a closely-contested bout, and some observers even thought Sterling might have deserved the nod. Not suprisingly, that includes “The Funk Master” himself. "I just don't want to feel like I'm talking s—t to Movsar because I'm not," Sterling said at the post-fight press conference. "I respect the guy. People might say whatever. I just do truly feel like I won that fight. If not, it's a draw, at worst. At the end of the day, the UFC makes the decisions. I'm just here to do my part, collect some checks, drink some rum, smoke some fine cigars after the fine work is done. I'm just enjoying life, living the dream. I'm living the American dream, and that's what it's all about."