Marlon Vera calls dibs on Aljamain Sterling's next title defense

Marlon Vera has refuted bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling's recent claim that he expects to defend his title against Sean O'Malley next.

'Chito' sits at No.4 in the bantamweight rankings and is in the finest form of his career. The Ecuadorian star is on a four-fight win streak and has earned either a Fight or Performance of the Night bonus in each. His latest win came against former champion Dominick Cruz, stopping him in the fourth round with a stunning head kick.

The 29-year-old responded to a post on Twitter which included a clip of his KO victory over Cruz, stating that he should be next in line for the belt:

"Next in line"

The tweet from Marlon Vera comes just a day after 'Funk Master' confirmed his interest in facing Sean O'Malley. 'Sugar' produced the biggest performance of his career at UFC 280 last month, winning via split decision against Petr Yan. The win moved O'Malley up over 10 places in the rankings, meaning he now sits at the No.1 spot.

In an interview with ESPN MMA, the bantamweight champ admitted to preferring a fight against O'Malley over Henry Cejudo, making no mention of 'Chito':

"Sugar Sean, sign the contract. That's my guy, there is no contract though. If there's a guy I could pick, I'd pick Sugar. I think he's the biggest fight, he's the most active and be beat the No.1 guy, a former champion. I don't see how you can backtrack after saying the winner of their fight gets the next crack at the title. For me, It's Sean O'Malley."

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Aljamain Sterling labeled T.J. Dillashaw as one of the weakest fighters he's faced

Aljamain Sterling continued to fire shots at T.J. Dillashaw this week, labeling him one of the weakest fighters he's faced in the octagon.

Sterling and Dillashaw fought in UFC 280's co-main event last month. The bout was expected to be an even contest but Sterling dominated from the beginning. 'Funk Master' outwrestled Dillashaw with ease before getting a TKO victory in the second round.

After the fight, Dillashaw revealed that he had been suffering with a dislocated shoulder since April.

In the same interview with ESPN MMA, Aljamain Sterling questioned whether the 36-year-old was weaker because of the shoulder or because he wasn't on performance-enhancing drugs:

"Even in the early striking exchanges, I gave him an opportunity and he did nothing that was threatening whatsoever. I outstruck him... I felt like when I grabbed his leg, it felt like a man versus a child. No exaggeration, this was probably one of the weaker guys I've ever competed against. That's how I felt. I don't know whether it's because he's off the stuff."

Catch Aljamain Sterling's full interview here: