BREAKING: Aljamain Sterling to leave the bantamweight division after title defense fight against Sean O'Malley at UFC 292

UFC champion Aljamain Sterling has spoken about his future in the bantamweight division after his upcoming encounter against Sean O'Malley at UFC 292.

'Funkmaster' recently did an interview with MMA journalist Chamatkar Sandhu where he discussed various topics like his recent victory over Henry Cejudo and his next title defense against 'Suga'.

Speaking about his future as a bantamweight, Sterling said that his days as a 135-pounder are numbered. The 33-year-old stated that regardless of the outcome, the fight against O'Malley at UFC 292 will likely mark his last appearance in the division.

Giving his reasoning for the decision, Sterling said that it was getting more difficult for him to make the 135-pound weight limit. Sterling said:

"I'ma say, win or learn, this is probably my last fight at bantamweight... Even if I were to 'learn' and I didn't get my hand raised, it damn sure ain't because of Sean O'Malley running me out of the division. It's more so, this s**t's getting old, man. It hurts... It's the weight cut."

Check out Aljamain Sterling's comments below:

Sterling is currently having an incredible run in the UFC's bantamweight divison. 'Funkmaster' is riding a nine-fight win streak that includes victories over various prominent names like Pedro Munhoz, Cory Sandhagen, Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw and Henry Cejudo.

One interesting thing about the 33-year-old's move up to featherweight is that it could possibly provide his friend and teammate Merab Dvalishvili an opportunity to fight for the title, which seems unlikely as long as Sterling remains champion.

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Aljamain Sterling weighs in on his upcoming fight against Sean O'Malley

After his victory over Henry Cejudo at UFC 288, Aljamain Sterling faced off against Sean O'Malley inside the octagon, indicating that the two woud lock horns soon.

Now, it is official that the two bantamweights will fight for the title at UFC 292, which is set to take place on August 19 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.

During his interview with Chamatkar Sandhu, Sterling shared his thoughts on O'Malley and said that the 28-year-old had not faced someone like himself. Sterling claimed that upon their encounter, 'Suga' would realise that he is not on the same level as the champion.

"He's still a young buck in this game... He hasn't fought anyone who's a high-level grappler. He hasn't fought anyone his same size. He hasn't fought anyone who's... stronger. And I think when he steps in there with a beast like myself, it's gonna be completely different. He's going to realise really really quickly... there's levels to this."