Aljamain Sterling is reportedly set to face Sean O'Malley in the main event of UFC 292 in August. The bantamweight champion has not been thrilled with the promotion rushing him back following his UFC 288 victory over Henry Cejudo earlier this month.
Despite his ongoing war of words with UFC President Dana White, 'Funk Master' took to Twitter to note that he still has plenty of love for those in charge of the company. In addition to White, he mentioned Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell as well as matchmakers Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard, stating:
"FTR, I got nothing but love for Dana, Hunter, Sean, and Mick. These guys gave me a platform to change my life. I’ll forever be grateful for that and I don’t want that to ever be lost in translation. #4TimeFunkLoading…"
O'Malley caught wind of Sterling's tweet and responded by trolling his future opponent:
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"Thanks champ love you too"
Check out the tweets from Sterling and O'Malley below:
Sterling shared his displeasure with the promotion immediately for scheduling another title defense. He took to Twitter earlier in the day, stating:
"I’m a phone call away boss! Respectfully, you made a fight, the night of the fight, without a single word of it mentioned to me or checking on my injuries. I have a personal life outside of fighting. But once again, I’ll show up and piss in everyone’s Cheerios…again. Cheers 🥂"
Check out Aljamain Sterling's previous tweet below:
Sean O'Malley's coach believes the UFC wants 'Suga' to dethrone Aljamain Sterling
Sean O'Malley will look to dethrone Aljamain Sterling as the bantamweight champion at UFC 292. Speaking to Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour, the No.2-ranked bantamweight's coach, Tim Welch, revealed that he believes the UFC wants 'Suga' as the new champion, stating:
"Yeah. For sure. Having 'Suga' be the champion - I mean, what other bantamweight in history has just one-punched people and walked off like Mark Hunt?"
He continued:
"A bantamweight that's a tall, skinny kid with tattoos and curly hair one-punching people and walking off. The UFC knows what they're doing. 'Suga' is a big superstar and the UFC helped with that so I'm sure the UFC would love to see a KO artist that's as flashy as Sean be the champion."
Check out Tim Welch's comments on Sean O'Malley below:
Sean O'Malley has established himself as one of the brightest young stars in the UFC. While the promotion may hope for him to be champion, he will have his hands full as he looks to become the first fighter to defeat Aljamain Sterling since 2017.