Former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling will aim to make his mark in featherweight title contention when he faces No. 6-ranked Movsar Evloev at the upcoming UFC 307 pay-per-view (PPV) event on Sat., Oct. 5, 2024 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Unless Evloev fails his pre-fight drug test.
“From what I’ve heard, he’s not a clean athlete,” Sterling stated in an interview with Home of Fight (transcribed by MMA Junkie). “People may argue, ‘You have no proof.’ But the same was said about T.J. Dillashaw years ago. Cody Garbrandt called him out, and everyone overlooked it. T.J. was accused of teaching others how to cheat.”
Sterling lacks concrete evidence of cheating, and Evloev has never tested positive for drugs.
“Similar conversations have been had about Movsar, and I believe where there’s smoke, there’s fire,” Sterling added. “I may not have hard evidence, but I believe he knows he’s cheating. Regardless, I believe I will emerge victorious. That’s just my opinion, and may the best man win.”
Sterling (24-4) lost the bantamweight title to Sean O’Malley at UFC 292 in summer 2023 but had already been considering a move to the featherweight division. He made his featherweight debut with a win over Calvin Kattar at UFC 300 last April.
Evloev (18-0) maintained his unbeaten record with a win over Arnold Allen at UFC 297 in Toronto. Despite his perfect record, critics point out that all his UFC wins have been by decision, although he did earn “Fight of the Night” at UFC 288 in Newark.
For the full UFC 307 fight card and PPV lineup, click here.
