Aljamain Sterling has spoken out on the Moraes Vs Demetrius fight. The fight, which took place on ONE Championship on TNT 1, led to some significant controversy in the MMA Community.
Unlike the UFC, ONE Championship allows fighters to knee the heads of their downed opponents. The rule had been supported by Demetrious in the past who claimed that fights cannot be allowed to stall.
As things turned out, this came back to bite him when he took on Adriano Moraes. Adriano hit ‘Mighty Mouse’ with an uppercut and then struck him with a knee to the head as he tried to recover. As a result, Demetrious was knocked out and Moraes aced the bout.
This is why knees to downed opponents are vicious and ILLEGAL in MMA in the UFC! If this was the USA that knee is not allowed and Mighty Mouse can get up in a more safe and protective manner.
I hope Mighty Mouse is ok, but this is why I disagree with those rules. #ONEonTNT1
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) April 8, 2021
“I like these rules,” Johnson said in the post-fight interview. He was quick to acknowledge the defeat and felt that Moraes did nothing wrong. Even though many considered the result illegitimate, Demetrious was graceful in defeat and displayed great maturity throughout.
Back in UFC 259, Sterling won the UFC bantamweight championship against Petr Yan. Yan had thrown a knee to the head of a downed Sterling, resulting in an automatic disqualification. The result had caused a big uproar at the time.
Aljamain Sterling and ‘that’ fight against Petr Yan
In March, Aljamain Sterling became the UFC Bantamweight Champion. Although Yan was dominating the fight, one mistake yielded him the title. He threw a knee at a downed Sterling, effectively disqualifying himself and giving away the title in the process.
Petr Yan of Russia delivers an illegal knee against Aljamain Sterling in their UFC bantamweight championship fight during the UFC 259 event at UFC APEX on March 06, 2021, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Credits: Getty Images)
It is illegal, as Sterling was in a grounded position at that moment in time. The fighter also suffered a ‘concussion’ and had to recover in hospital. After the fight, Dana White confirmed that a rematch will take place due to the bizarre nature of the result.
Sterling, too, wished for an immediate rematch. The Funk Master and the UFC will confirm the date when they deem it fit. Conferences have since taken place and the fight will be hosted later this year.
