Sterling to Evloev: 'Either you wanna fight on my terms or I go fight somebody else...'
The former bantamweight champion made a successful jump to 145lbs with a dominant win over perennial contender Calvin Kattar at UFC 300. Following the victory and a #8 ranking next to his name, Sterling has been looking to fight someone in the featherweight top 5 - most notably Movsar Evloev and Brian Ortega, but so far, to no avail.
Lopes is a hot topic at featherweight after fighting Dan Ige on four hours' notice after Brian Ortega had withdrawn at the last minute at UFC 303. Lopes ultimately defeated Ige in a 3-round war, and UFC CEO Dana White confirmed he'd be fighting at the Sphere show, Noche UFC, on Sep. 14 if Lopes so wants it.
Ranking-wise, going against #12 contender Lopes would mean fighting down the ladder for Sterling, but beating Lopes is no easy feat, with Evloev having some trouble in his decision win over Lopes at UFC 288, which came on 5 days' notice. In terms of relevancy, however, a win over Lopes can create a decent amount of momentum for Sterling in his quest for title contention at a new weight class.Evloev was noncommittal about a rematch with Lopes until Lopes made a name for himself at UFC 303.
"Hey @Diegolopesmma, I wanna give you a rematch at the Sphere because @funkmastermma is running for his life, and this time I’m gonna finish you," Evloev wrote on 'X' last week. "Have you finally realized that the way the UFC pays attention to you is by mentioning my name?" Lopes responded to Evloev on 'X'. "Or are you afraid that tomorrow morning I'll be in your place in the rankings? It took you 3 months to get back to me.
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