The highlight of the UFC 288 tournament and headlined by the title battle for the most valuable thing. There was a tense atmosphere between the champion Sterling and the challenger Cejudo before the match. Swear words flew through the air, but the main thing happened in the cage. In addition, everyone watched with tension the comeback of the second-named, who after three years caught the match saliva again…
And there was nothing extra attractive to see. A packed arena in New Jersey watched an extremely even carving that was finally decided in full detail. Both of them tried to attack each other with the same weapons, which is why nothing revolutionary happened during the entire match. No blood, no significant facial scars. The five-round battle, on the other hand, brought constant pushing at the mesh and also measuring in stance, but there was a lack of bolder combinations and attempts at early termination.
That is why all the participants watched with tension how the fate of the title battle would be decided by the score judges. And it was really even (2×48-47 Sterling, 47-48). The position of the king was finally managed to be defended by the American fighter Sterling, who continues to pamper the throne of the bantam division. The defeated Cejudo, on the other hand, fell after a three-year hiatus from wrestling, but he certainly does not need to be ashamed of his performance.
After the announcement, things started to happen. A jubilant Sterling took a dig at confident fighter Sean O’Malley after the bout, who headed to the cage and stripped off his jacket when prompted. There was an argument and arranging a mutual clash. What was the security guard supposed to do, who finally escorted the second-named out. It is “Cukřík” who will be Sterling’s next opponent, there were shouts about the September deadline…
Only then did Cejudo finally get to speak, who was slightly surprised by the judge’s statement. “He was tougher than me. But my coaches thought I won three rounds. But I don’t know…it was close, Aljamain did a great job anyway,” he said in front of his rival, with whom he subsequently shook hands. The 35-year-old former two-time champion has not finished his career yet, but at the same time he admits that this could be his last match “I’m a little confused right now,” he admitted.
Easiest money I’ve ever made. Not a scratch on Aljo! Congrats Funkmaster! Good little fighter is Henry but give it a rest with these agendas all the time. The guy is sub 20 fights in his career. His little feints an all ahaha omg please teach me mastermind lol. Done the splits…
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 7, 2023
But who did not forget to take a dig after the match, it was the beloved and hated Conor McGregor, who also pointed out that Sterling’s face was without a single scar. “Easiest money I’ve ever made. Not a scratch on Aljo. Good little fighter Henry, but leave his plans alone. This guy has less than 20 fights…he was doing breakups like a stripper and got fucked,” he mocked a rival on Twitter.
Other elite UFC fighters also saw the balance of the fight, and there were also comments about the boring concept of the fight. “The scrap of the bantam division,” wrote Raphael Assuncao, Sterling’s 2017 defeater. “What kind of match was that? Two champions,” said Giga Chikadze, representative of the featherweight division, for example.