Aljamain Sterling eyeing matchup with Arnold Allen for UFC return: “Interested in seeing what my striking game looks like”

Former UFC champion Aljamain Sterling wants to test his striking against Arnold Allen.

‘The Funk Master’ is fresh off his return to the octagon at UFC 310 last month in Las Vegas. There, the former bantamweight champion competed in his second bout up at 145 pounds against Movsar Evloev. Despite a lot of early success from Aljamain Sterling, the undefeated Russian rallied to score a unanimous decision win.

Post-fight, Aljamain Sterling admitted that he was unsure what would be next for himself. However, it seems that the former UFC bantamweight champion has figured that out. Speaking in a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, ‘The Funk Master’ called for a clash with fellow featherweight contender Arnold Allen.

For his part, ‘The Almighty’ was last seen in the cage at UFC 304 in Manchester last summer. There, Arnold Allen snapped a two-fight losing streak with a unanimous decision win over fellow striker Giga Chikadze. With both men inside the featherweight top ten, Aljamain Sterling believes the matchup makes a lot of sense.

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“It’d be nice to shake it up with Arnold Allen… I’m interested in seeing what my striking game looks like at [145lbs] with a guy like that.”

Who’s down for Aljamain Sterling x Arnold Allen? 👀 pic.twitter.com/BkRc8SG5on

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 21, 2025

Aljamain Sterling calls for a clash with Arnold Allen in his UFC return

In the interview, the former UFC champion added that he believes the bout is a perfect one to test his striking. While Arnold Allen has scored vicious stoppages in the past over the likes of Dan Hooker, Aljamain Sterling believes the Brit has a few holes in his game that he could exploit. Especially given how much he’s worked on striking in training recently.

“It would be nice to shake it up with Arnold Allen.” Aljamain Sterling stated to Ariel Helwani earlier today, discussing his UFC return. “I think he’s a tough striker and believe it or not, I’m interested in seeing how my striking looks at ’45 with a guy like that. I don’t have to force the wrestling or worry about being taken down as much. Maybe he’ll be the one shooting on me.”

He continued, “I mean, I always have had that, right? But, I think it gives me an opportunity to work on my striking at this point in my career and see where my striking is actually at without the threat of being taken down… I wanted to stand up with [Movsar], and I didn’t get to do that. We worked so much on the standup, and I think he said the same thing… I think it would be a fun fight with [Arnold], I really do.”

What do you make of these comments from the UFC featherweight? Do you want to see Aljamain Sterling vs. Arnold Allen?