After rewriting the bantamweight record book, “Funkmaster” Sterling is testing both his body and legacy at 145 lbs—one calculated gamble at a time.
Table of Contents
Scene-Setter Lede
The antiseptic smell of the T-Mobile Arena’s visiting locker room still mingled with dried sweat when Aljamain Sterling slumped onto a folding chair, the sting of a 29-28×3 unanimous-decision loss to Movsar Evloev moments fresh in his mind. A cut man dabbed the swelling under his left eye while coach Ray Longo hovered nearby, silent but searching. Sterling exhaled, unlacing the four-ounce gloves that had failed him for the first time as a featherweight. “I’m 35, man,” he whispered to teammates, grappling with the brutal math of mileage and ambition. Yet even in defeat on 7 December 2024, the former bantamweight champion’s wrestling-calloused hands still shook with purpose—proof that the Funkmaster’s story had entered a tense new chapter rather than its final page.
Early Life & Wrestling Roots
Born July 31 1989 in Uniondale, New York, to Jamaican immigrants Cleveland and Sophia Sterling, Aljamain Sterling grew up one of 15 siblings—seven full, the rest half—and watched several older brothers slide toward local gangs. Wrestling became an escape hatch after he stepped onto Uniondale High’s mats in 2004, trading street risk for single-leg shots.
Sterling’s funky, scramble-heavy style followed him to Morrisville State and then SUNY Cortland, where he blossomed into a two-time NCAA Division III All-American with an 87-27 collegiate record. It was at Cortland that a chance meeting with future UFC great Jon Jones convinced Sterling MMA might offer a bigger stage for his athletic wiring and magnetic personality.
Road to the UFC & Bantamweight Supremacy
Aljamain Sterling’s 8-0 regional run in Cage Fury FC drew Matt Serra and Ray Longo’s attention, and by February 2014 he debuted in the UFC octagon. Nine years later he owned bantamweight history.
- UFC 259 (Mar 6 2021): Down on two of three scorecards, Sterling became the first fighter to win a UFC title by disqualification when Petr Yan drilled him with an illegal knee.
- UFC 273 (Apr 9 2022): In the rematch, he edged Yan by split decision, silencing “paper champ” critics and unifying the belt.
- UFC 280 (Oct 22 2022): A relentless ground-and-pound flurry against T.J. Dillashaw, whose shoulder dislocated mid-fight, produced a second-round TKO.
- UFC 288 (May 6 2023): Sterling out-hustled Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo in a razor-thin split decision for his record-setting third consecutive bantamweight defense.
By the end of that run, he sat second all-time at bantamweight in control time (1:09:10) and total strikes landed (1,670), averaging 2.02 takedowns every 15 minutes—proof that “backpack-style” grappling can be both effective and fan-winning.
Pull quote: “People think you’re being a weight bully, but I lose all those advantages when I cut my body so severely.” —Sterling on his brutal 35-pound cuts to 135 lbs. Bloody Elbow
Losing the Crown & Reinventing at 145 lbs
The success streak met its end at UFC 292 in Boston, where Sean O’Malley’s step-back right hand ended Sterling’s reign in 51 seconds. Wikipédia In the aftermath, the champion admitted that draining 35 pounds each camp left him “close to the hospital” and accelerated a long-rumored move to featherweight.
At UFC 300 on 13 April 2024 Sterling debuted at 145 lbs, blanketing Calvin Kattar over three rounds for a 30-27×3 unanimous decision despite loud Vegas boos aimed at his wrestle-heavy approach. MMA FightingThe Sun The celebration halted eight months later when Movsar Evloev edged him 29-28×3 at UFC 310, exploiting late-round reversals to hand Sterling the first loss of his featherweight tenure.
Sterling now stands 1-1 in the division and has publicly called for match-ups with Arnold Allen or Brian Ortega in spring 2025, insisting, “I’m still chasing that gold.”
Technical Breakdown — “Human Backpack”
Sterling’s signature is the body-triangle ride that earned him nicknames like “Human Jansport” and, eventually, “Funkmaster.” He chains takedowns—often a single-leg into inside-trip—before climbing the back, lacing a triangle, and fishing for rear-naked chokes while peppering strikes.
Statistically, his game is both smothering and efficient: a 51 percent significant-strike accuracy with a +2.4 striking differential during his bantamweight title run, per UFC record-book excerpts and BetMGM analytics. On the mat he attempts 1.0 submissions per 15 minutes, but the true weapon is positional control—second only to teammate Merab Dvalishvili all-time at 135 lbs.
Under Ray Longo’s tutelage, Sterling’s stance switches and stance-blending jabs improved each camp, forcing opponents to respect his hands just long enough for double-legs. Dillashaw called Sterling’s cage-clinch sequences “like wrestling in quicksand,” a grudging compliment the champion later framed as proof of evolution.
Personality & Brand
Walkout reggae blares while Sterling brandishes the Jamaican flag—an homage to the island roots that fuel his charisma. Off-camera he streams on Twitch, hosts The Weekly Scraps podcast, and crusades for improved fighter pay, once stating, “If we can’t get health insurance, at least let us get a bigger slice of the pie.”
“I’m not on Evloev’s level? Nah—I just need one more camp to show I can be champion at 145.” —Sterling on his podcast, Dec 2024. MMA Fighting
The Funkmaster persona was born in high-school wrestling rooms where teammates dubbed him “Funky” for unconventional scrambles; he tweaked it to avoid copying Ben Askren and embraced “Funkmaster” as a brand equal parts swagger and self-deprecation.
What’s Next & Stakes
Sterling turns 36 in July 2025—young enough for a second title run but old enough to feel every training-camp bruise. After UFC 310 he admitted, “At 35, I don’t know if I really want to climb the ladder all over again… I’ve got to see what the UFC offers.” Yet within weeks he resurfaced on The MMA Hour calling for Arnold Allen, whose own wrestling gaps lure Sterling’s competitive instinct, or Brian Ortega, a submission ace that promises grappling fireworks.
The featherweight landscape shifted when Ilia Topuria dethroned Alexander Volkanovski, leaving a power vacuum. Two wins could vault Sterling—currently ranked No. 9—into a title eliminator, especially given his pay-per-view track record as a former champion and bona fide “MMA news” magnet.
But the margin is razor-thin: another loss or a prolonged layoff could nudge him toward retirement talks he’s already entertained. The next booking, then, is less bout agreement and more existential referendum.
Closing Beat
Back in that UFC 310 locker room, Sterling finally stood, slipped a hoodie over bruised shoulders, and flashed the half-grin fans know from Twitch streams. “I still think I can beat him,” he said of Evloev, voice equal parts disappointment and danger. The road from former bantamweight champion to UFC featherweight contender is brutal, but so is the stubborn belief that fueled every backpack ride to history. For Aljamain Sterling, the climb starts again—one funky step at a time.
For those mapping out fight night weeks in advance, we keep an always-updated MMA schedule packed with every major card and under-the-radar regional gem. And if you’re tracking divisional ladders, our freshly refreshed MMA rankings page sorts the contenders from the pretenders.