UFC 280: Aljamain Sterling 1-on-1 with Kevin Iole
Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling talks to Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole about his upcoming fight at UFC 280 against former champion T.J. Dillashaw, who Sterling believes is still taking performance enhancing drugs despite Dillashaw's 2-year suspension after testing positive for EPO. Sterling blames inadequate testing methods by USADA and the UFC for Dillashaw competing while "juiced to the gills" and shares his thoughts on how to improve the system.
Video Transcript
[AUDIO LOGO]
KEVIN IOLE: Hey, everybody. I am Kevin Iole. Welcome to "Yahoo! Sports." UFC-280, on October 22, in Abu Dhabi. One of the great cards the UFC has put together in a long time. And they put together some good cards. This one is going to be really something else. And one of my guests right now is Aljamain Sterling, the bantamweight champion. He is fighting TJ Dillashaw in the co-main event of what should be a fabulous fight. Alja, how are you doing, my friend?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Good, good. I'm excited to take on TJ Pill J. And take out the snake.
KEVIN IOLE: So I take it that you're not believing the results coming from USADA that TJ has been clean since the violation that got him suspended for two years?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Definitely not. He can say whatever he wants though. That guy-- that guy is a weasel man. He's going to figure out any way possible to get around it. And as you see with any of these people who do these studies on these tests, man, they always say that, the way people cheat is always going to be ahead of the testing protocol.
So if there's a will, there's a way. And TJ is one of those guys who wills it into existence. Man, he's been doing it for years. And I'm not-- I'm not buying that he's all of a sudden just stopped. Like, I just don't believe that's in his nature.
KEVIN IOLE: I'll throw this at you though, just to be fair to him, right? You know, he lost two years of his career. He lost-- his reputation has been soiled. Look what you just called him, everybody-- that's a lot of money that he lost. Why would he do it again, given what he lost the last time? And given the fact that you guys are tested so carefully?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I mean, we're tested so carefully. For how many years he didn't get caught? He got caught by the New York State Athletic Commission. That's a big difference from getting caught from USADA. USADA'S thing was that testing for EPO was too expensive. This whole time I thought they tested for everything. They were pretty much only testing for steroids or whatever it is that they said it was. So there's no guarantee that this guy has been doing it the right way ever.
KEVIN IOLE: Sure.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I mean, his teammates already outted him from years ago. And it is what it is, man. I mean, you even had Cody Garbrandt who outed him at the press conference and everyone swept it under the rug. And he said-- and TJ gave a third grader response like, oh, yeah, yeah, sure, yeah. I've been cheating, yeah. And then, he gets caught.
And it was like, dude, he only said this years ago before he even fought Cejudo. And yeah man, so it is what it is. I know the guy is just not a good person. I've met him in person a couple of times. He's an arrogant little prick. And he needs some humbling man, the Iron Sheik way. You know, so break his back, make him humble, suplex him.
KEVIN IOLE: Well, you know who my buddy is, right? The Iron Sheik, so.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah. [CHUCKLES] But nah, I know he's been being tested. But again, USADA wasn't the one that caught him. So what the hell is the difference between then and now? It's really not-- I already made peace with it that, there's more than likely, there's a 90% chance that this guy found a way to get around it. And he's going to do it. And it is what it is. I made peace with that. And if I lose to him, I lose to him. I really don't give a [MUTED]
At the end of the day, I'm going to give my best foot forward. And may the better man win, whether it's a guy who's clean versus the guy who's juiced to the gills, you know. So again, he lost everything he lost. But he also made everything he made in the process of ruining a lot of people's careers.
So for what it's worth, like, yo, yeah, I lost two years of my career. Dude, I don't wanna hear that bro. Like you made out like a bandit in the night. And you got a slap on the wrist. Like you should have been suspended-- I think he should have been banned. I think-- I still think, people can say whatever they want. Saying that this is a soft mentality. You're doing an illegal substance that is performance enhancing in a combat sport where you are inflicting brain damage--
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: --on somebody. That should result in some type of criminal charges. Now there's no-- you're pretty much coming to the cage with a bat or something. That's what I equate the whole thing to.
So you could say what-- people can say whatever they want because they're not the ones that are training and risking their lives.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: And then you will hear those same people who are bitching, and saying that, oh, we're complaining and whining, would be the same ones-- people just, there's just no winning. They'll say, oh, no one told you to do this sport.
KEVIN IOLE: Well I-- let me say this. Years ago, there's a million videos of me haranguing Dana White about not doing testing on fighters, right? And I'm saying, hey, these guys are hitting each other in the head, kicking each other in the head, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But now that the testing is in. And they're spending-- they're spending tens of millions of dollars on that testing.
What good is it if you don't-- if the athletes themselves don't have confidence in it, right? So it sounds like you don't have confidence in the testing that USADA's doing. Have you reached out to Jeff Nowitzki, or Hunter Campbell, or anybody with USADA and said, hey, these are problems that I, as an athlete, see in the testing protocol?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I mean, I think they know what it is already. I mean, they can say whatever they want about how much money they're spending. But if you're going to go outright on record and say that you don't actually test for X, Y, and Z because of the price range of this, then what are we doing? What is the point of doing all this? Is it just for show? Do you catch the people that you just feel like catching when it's convenient?
I don't really understand the mindset with everything. And I think that's where it stops and dies for me. It's-- if you're gonna do it, do it all the way. Don't do it half assed. That's just pretty much where I'm at. If you're going to say, oh, I'm spending X amount of money. Then spend the money and then do the shit the right way. And try to catch the people-- make it randomized. Maybe you're not doing it for everybody. Make it randomized. Pick a couple of people per month and start like really trying catch people. With EPO and everything? Apparently not.
KEVIN IOLE: Yeah, I think--
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Apparently not.
KEVIN IOLE: Yeah. Somebody got through.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: If they did, then why wasn't TJ caught?
KEVIN IOLE: Well I think what happened-- and so I'm not an expert, so I don't want to go too far into this. But I think what happens sometimes is, EPO--
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Just so you know, I'm not an expert either. So I just only know what I hear on people that are deemed more intellectual in that space, like the more plates, more dates guy. And whatever, whatever. So I only know like, to a certain--
KEVIN IOLE: Well, EPO has a short half life, right? Meaning it stays in your system a very short time. And that's how Lance Armstrong-- I, this I know for sure. How Lance Armstrong was able to get around it. Because what they did was, the rules at that time said, you can only be tested once in a 24 hour period. So once he got tested, then they could take it after that because they knew when the test would come again, right? And so they were able to avoid the agents until they knew they were clean.
So EPO gets out of your system in a very quick manner. So to catch 'em, you had to kind of be sophisticated and know when-- not only know, hey, I want to test X person, but when to test X person. I think, there was EPO testing, if I'm not mistaken. I don't want to be 100% certain, but I'm pretty sure there has been.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: For TJ, in particular, you're saying.
KEVIN IOLE: For you-- all you guys.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I mean, from what I understand, they never tested us for EPO. From what I understand.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: So that's why I'm just confused by the whole thing. It's just like, what are we doing? We're playing charades. I don't know.
KEVIN IOLE: Let me ask you this, you're going into a fight. So we know how mental fighting is. And before your last fight, you were coming off a win. And I'll say a win this way, "win" over Peter Yan, that a lot of people thought was a loss, right? Didn't deserve to be a win. And that bothered you. I mean, I remember talking to you, and seeing you, and you were bothered by the reaction to that.
And now you go out, and you actually win that fight. And you prove yourself as the legitimate champion of the world. So instead of being able to go out and have a title defense, and fight, and prove how good you are. Now you've got it in your mind again that you got this issue, right? It's like, do you ever wonder, when am I ever going to get a normal fight and not have to have all this stuff going on?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah, but you know, what's a fight without some drama? Other than that, it's just a fight, I guess. So to have a little drama, a little bit of a storyline makes it more fun. At least from-- the way I say, I like the drama. I'll just sit there with my popcorn all day long. Like I'll go on Twitter and just read a thread just to see what people are saying.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: That's just the type of person I am, and kind of how we grew up. So I mean, it is what it is. I think it just makes more for a unique story. And then, if it ever does come out, like the amount of guys that competed against that have been on [MUTED], I think it just makes it that much better.
So I'll be sitting nice and steady in my rocking chair when I'm old. And I think, my wherewithals are all going to be intact in comparison to all these other guys who've been on [MUTED] and their body is falling apart. You know, so right now, hopefully, it's worth it to these guys when they're in pain later. You have no idea what this stuff is going to do to you in 10, 20 years. So I don't touch any of that.
But again, when it comes to the storyline, I think it just makes more for a more drama filled fight. And it makes it a little bit bigger than-- someone has to eat their words. That's why I talk [MUTED] to begin with. I always talk [MUTED] because someone has to eat their words. You're either going to be afraid to say how you really feel, or you're gonna say it with your chest. and I say it with my chest.
KEVIN IOLE: Yes you do.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: And I'm willing to go out there and put my money where my mouth is. And a lot of these guys are afraid to do that. So when they have to sign the dotted line against me, they're already knowing that I'm going to come in saying some [MUTED] and that's just the way it is. With this, TJ already knew he had it coming. No matter who he fights, it's gonna be-- always be a talking point.
KEVIN IOLE: A topic, yeah.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah, so.
KEVIN IOLE: You made your statement in the ring last time though, right? Because that first round you go out there, and all the [MUTED] that you got from-- not only from Peter Yan, who was ripping you, but a lot of the fan base and some of the media and whatnot. You come out and you dominate those first two rounds. And you're looking like, hey-- And I wonder how much you put into his head. Like, he's going, what the hell? This isn't the same guy I fought before?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah, I would imagine he thought that. And especially, when I got him down and held him down. I think-- even the first fight, man, like I said, I explained why my performance was like that. And it's like, everyone forgot how good I was in the blink of an eye. It was like everyone had amnesia.
I'm like, do you think I just randomly just suck overnight? And then, this guy just became this super athlete, God given talent. I'm like, look at the guys we fought. We have some common opponents. And those common opponents, those matchups, did not look the same.
So I'm just like, if you guys want to write me off, that's fine. I know why I showed up like that. I already said it was my fault. My mistake. But it wouldn't happen again. And in the rematch, I got to show that. And I got a little cocky in that fourth round when I took him down.
KEVIN IOLE: Yeah.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I tried to be extra fancy. And I tried to jump on his back and get style points. Because I want to get some cool highlights. [CHUCKLES] And it backfired. And I fell off the top. And then he ended up in top of my guard. It is what it is. I took him down in the fifth round as well. That fifth round was very, very close.
Honestly, watching that fifth round, I'm like, depending on how you scoring it, you can really score it either way. Because there was very little damage done and more about control time. And I think, people are just so blinded by-- they just wanted to be right. That Yan was going to win by anything he wants. Blah, blah, blah. The boogeyman.
And when I shut that [MUTED] down, it was just kind of like, I'm confused. No, no, no, he won round one by a kick. No he won round one because he was walking forward with a mean Arthur face. And it looked like he was really scary, and might do something dangerous, but never hit the guy. So I'm just like, all these things grasping at straws. It just makes everything so much more sweeter for me. Because I'm just like--
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: --man, I could be so petty. And I could still keep talking about this. But I'm just like, all right, on to the next one.
KEVIN IOLE: Exactly.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I had my moment. I had my fun in the sun with it. And I think, I will see Yan again at some point. And right now, I'm just focused on the guy that I got in front of me. And that's TJ Pillashaw.
KEVIN IOLE: When you look at him-- so you went on the long rant about what you suspect that he's been doing. But is there anything in this fight game-- like is there any fight-- either the Sandhagen fight, or the Cejudo fight that he lost. That was pretty quick. So I don't know if you can take anything from that. That you look at, that you see, there's areas where you can take advantage?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I just think that I'm the bigger, stronger athlete. I mean, he can say whatever you want. He said, I'm just a good athlete. He's also just a good athlete. And this athlete is smart enough to fight where he doesn't get hit. This athlete fights wild enough to the point where his face always looks like mush after the fights.
So there's no real like crazy takeaways. I think I'm bigger. I think I'm stronger. I think my endurance is just as good, especially, if he's not going to be on the juice. I think, the gear, I should call it. If he's not going to be on the gear, I think our conditioning is going to be right there neck and neck. And I think, I probably edge him out.
My grappling. I think he's never fought someone who actually wants to keep him down on the ground. Or actually has the back control, or the takedown control. All this other stuff. Watching his takedown escapes and watching how he gets up. I'm just like, if you think you're going to get up like that against me, good luck to you man.
So even if he does it once or twice, I'm like, dude, you gotta-- dude, you gotta-- do that for 25 minutes. It's going to be a hard time to do that against someone who's bigger than you. And who can literally go zombie mode and just do that all fight long.
So he's got some good tricks. But other than that-- I mean, everyone's got some good tricks. It's just about studying the opponent, understanding what they do. And then studying yourself and how can you implement your game. And I think, I got the perfect recipe for him.
KEVIN IOLE: You obviously, have a pretty good staff of people around you. Coaches and whatnot around you. But I want to ask you, one of your coaches, Ray Longo, is a guy that-- you watch Jon Anik show, you love Ray Longo, right? You hear a lot of-- what is it like in a corner when Ray Longo is going crazy, right? Just yelling at you and pumping you up. I mean, what goes through your head when you see that guy throwing everything into it like he does?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: It shows he cares, man. For me, I come from that type of coaching background. Just loud, in your face, waking you up, making sure you hear them kind of thing. And that's always been my coaching style as well. But it doesn't work for everybody. Fortunately, for me it works. I actually relish in it. And I enjoy it.
So it's cool. I think, for other people, it might even psych them out a bit. Because I know they're big fans of hearing that. And then when they got to be across the cage, and then they [CHUCKLES] have to be the one dealing with that, I think it's a little different for them.
But for me, it's all good, man. I enjoy the moment. I like having those guys in the corner. And just having the experience. Just knowing what I do, seeing the stuff that I do, knowing what we're capable of, that all ties in together. And I think it just makes everything work.
KEVIN IOLE: They were pretty exercised after the fourth round of your last fight. Because it's like, I thought of the old boxing highlight, Angelo Dundee and Sugar Ray Leonard, "You're blowing it son. You're blowing it," right? When that happened.
And they were kind of upset. Hey, they wanted you to get that back. You lost the momentum. And they wanted you to get it back. Did they make a difference in the corner after the fourth round, in terms of, recentering you and getting you re-motivated to go out and win the fifth?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yes and no. I mean, if I'm being honest, I felt like I was up comfortably with a 10-8 round. Like if I'm going back to the moment of the fight, I felt like I had a 10-8 round in the second round. Possibly a 10-8 in the third. But that one I wasn't so sure about.
And in the first round, I knew I won because I counted the strikes in my head. So I was like, dude, I'm pretty much pitching a shutout. This guy got an opportunity to be on top for 2 minutes and did absolutely zero. Didn't even-- I think he might have thrown three punches and maybe one of 'em gotten through, like barely. Like a glancing shot.
Other than that, I'm like-- I was kind of like-- I felt like-- I was like, oh, even if I don't win the fifth round. Like this is the way I'm thinking. Even if I don't win the fifth round, I won technically with one 10-8 round, I won four rounds, minus the fourth. But in terms of the scoring, I'm like, there's no way this guy wins. He needs to get a finish.
So in my head it was just like, fight smart, don't be stupid. Make him wrestle as much as you can make him wrestle. This way he takes away from his opportunities to get a knockout strike in the open space. And that was the mindset in that moment. And obviously, I know they were telling me like, let's get this fifth round kind of thing. But that was the way I was thinking. So it was kind of like a combative motion.
But then I did get the takedown. I was like, oh, I could just kind of just hang out here. But then I kind of let him up. And then he fought out. Actually, he fought out well that time defensively. And when he escaped. We went back to another scramble. Then he got the takedown. It was just us playing roly poly on the ground.
So there was no real threat. Like, oh my God, you're about to lose. I was kind of just hanging out. You see me looking up at the clock just like, oh, OK. I'm just kind of hanging out. People-- I know some people are like, oh, you gave away-- I did give away the rounds. So I will say that.
That's probably not ideal going into this fight. So that's one thing I did have to mentally work on. Like, hey man, we don't give away rounds. Even if it's a comeback from a 13 month layoff, let's not give away rounds and make it muddy like we did the last fight. So that's--
KEVIN IOLE: Yeah, because if you lose one round, it's 20% of the fight.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah, yeah. So that's the way I looked at it afterwards. And I was like-- but in the moment, this is what I was thinking.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Because I always try to process what's going on minute by minute. OK, if I won this first minute, it is 4 minutes left. If I do this, tie him up, put him in the cage. I should theoretically be winning, based on what I'm doing in my head.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I don't know if that's good or bad. But it's been working so far, so I ain't gonna stop.
KEVIN IOLE: You got a bell around ya. Let's end with this. And you're a smart guy. And you've obviously thought a lot about judging and everything. So the risk you take is what you just referenced. In my head, I'm winning. You don't know for sure if you're winning.
The judges-- how do we improve the judging? I mean, it seems like some people want to change the 10-point must system. I'm not sure that there's a better way around it. Do you score the whole fight? Do you have any thoughts on how MMA judging can be improved? Or do you think, it's just we have to train better people going forward?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Man, I think a perfect example is like, even Mackenzie Dern versus Xiaonan Yan the last weekend. And watching that fight was very disturbing because I don't even what else you have to do anymore to get at 10-8. Some people were saying she didn't land any significant strikes. I'm like, have you ever been on the ground with gravity, getting flattened out, with someone throwing punches on you.
Albeit, not like they're posturing up and dropping these hellbows. But if you're on the ground with gravity, punching you in the head multiple times, that does not feel good. You're probably gonna have-- more than likely gonna have a headache at the end of that night.
So I think it comes down to the judges need to go into these positions. Because then, you kind of eradicate what it is for a 10-8 around for a grappler. So you understand what a knockout is, a knock down is. A clean knockdown, not one where a guy is moving and he's sidestepping. And you hit him with the jab and then he falls over. And then it's like, oh, he knocked you down.
This isn't boxing. That's a quick little off balancing thing. So yeah, that could have been a little strike that just caught the guy in between a step versus a hard strike, where you know a guy sat you down.
Yeah, like my fight with Peter Yan. In the first round, he sat me down with a right hand. That's a clean, clear cut knockdown. That's the difference between something like that and something being caught in transition. Where you kind of gotta look at it a little bit differently. OK, that was a significant strike. Let's not weight it so heavily as a straight up knockdown.
And then for grappling, we don't have that clarity. Because you get 4 minutes of control time for myself, for Mackenzie Dern. And then for a Patricky Mix. Patricky Mix gets a 10-8 round. I don't get a 10-8 round going for submissions and big ground and pound. And having big moments in that round as well.
And then Mackenzie Dern, the same thing. She clenches her up at the 4:20 mark. Finally gets her down. She has over 4 minutes of control, plus ground and pound strikes. How does not-- how does that not equate to a 10-8 round?
So I think, these judges need to get in there to know what it feels like. Because they're watching it. And then, it takes away like, OK, why am I going to grapple, if I'm never going to get a 10-8 round, no matter how dominant of a position I get. I just don't-- I don't know. I don't really understand it.
KEVIN IOLE: I tweeted during the round. I tweeted during the round. I said, is this a 10-8 round? Because it was in my head. It was close to a 10-8 round. Ultimately, I did not score at a 10-8 round. And I'll tell you why I did not. I did not, because I didn't think there was a near finish or the significant amount of damage.
Now I know what you said at the beginning of your answer about, what it feels like when it's coming by one punch, one big right hand from somebody feels that way, right? And so I felt like there wasn't a near finish and submission. She didn't have the choke in. She didn't ever have the arm bar in. It wasn't like Yan was having a break. Yan did a great job of avoiding getting into them. But I felt like that near finish wasn't there. And so that's where that extra point didn't come from me.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Yeah, but if you're rendered defenseless the entire time for a five minute round, then what else is-- what else is there for it to be a 10-8?
KEVIN IOLE: It was a-- that was a tough one, right? Because I'm sitting there. And you start here. And then, you're coming in the middle. And you're getting very close. And so I was sitting there. I tweeted it during the fifth round. I said, is this a 10-8 round?
Because it was in my head that it was there. And I was looking for that-- like you said-- the way you referred to it, the hellbow, maybe? Or Mackenzie to have her in the arm bar for a while, or the choke for a while, that Yan figured a way out of it. So it was close. But it's interesting. So I guess, your answer, ultimately, and the short version of it would be, train the judges better?
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I think, the judges got to get in there and know what it feels like in these different positions. And I think, when you have scenarios and rounds that you can look back at. And then reference, and then go through that yourself, then you can see what it feels like. Then you have a better understanding of what is what. Versus what you think is happening versus what you know is happening from experience.
You could throw that 1-2 cross. And someone could roll with it and it looks like a big impactful strike. But you rolled with it because you're standing on the feet. Versus you being flattened down and me stuffing your head and throwing a punch. Your head has nowhere to go.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: That's a more impactful strike than that right cross that's hitting someone on the move. Because they're rolling with it. They have some give. Versus you stuck on the ground, and meet the only shots. Dude, you ain't going nowhere. You take every single pound of impact from that strike. That's just my--
KEVIN IOLE: OK, if that's true-- if that is true-- I didn't mean to interrupt you. But if that is true, then the referees have to stop-- start stopping fights sooner on the ground, right? Because a lot of times, I think the argument, especially, when MMA was starting to blossom and people were starting to come to MMA in bigger numbers.
The thing was, well, it's not like boxing where you're getting hit in the head for 36 minutes in a 12 round fight. Even if you're on the ground, they don't have the leverage that they have when they're standing. So now if what you're saying is true, then you're going to force referees to start stopping fights earlier, right? Because if your head doesn't have anywhere to go and you're getting hit 10, 12, 14 times in a row.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I mean, it doesn't even need to be like, if I'm saying it's true. It's like-- it's just common-- I think it's common sense. I mean--
KEVIN IOLE: Oh, I believe you. I get it.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: If you're a mounted or-- even like, let's say, who was it? Who was the guy that just fought? Davis versus Slav. In those positions, that fight should have probably been stopped multiple different times. Because that guy had no-- there was no option--
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: --but for that guy to sit there and absorb the impact of those strikes. Those are-- that's what I'm talking about. Where you have nowhere to go. But when you're on the feet and Davis is getting hit, people are seeing. And they're like, oh, he's getting--
KEVIN IOLE: Right, they can see the head.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: But you're moving away from it. Where it's like, yeah, I'm getting more tired because I'm standing up there with you. Versus now you're on the ground, and you have literally no space for you to roll with the punch. You have to just absorb the entire impact.
There's no like, oh, I could have like-- I could stay under the cage. And I'm doing this Ali thing and playing a rope-a-dope. There's none of that. You literally are stuck there to-- And you have to accept everything. It's not like you have a choice.
KEVIN IOLE: Right.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Keith Peterson is one of the best refs. He let some of those fights go. And I applaud him for letting-- giving the fighter an opportunity to fight through every single chance that they can. But let's be honest, when you're stuck in those positions and you're just absorbing the impact, that's what it is. You're just absorbing impact and damage.
So that's why I looked at that fight. I'm like, if people watched that fight again. That fifth round with Mackenzie Dern. You're going to be like, OK, I see what he's saying now. I get what he's saying now. Because I just don't think-- what else do you have to do to get a 10-8 round? I'm like, damn, not every fight you're going to posture up cleanly. But you're going to be able to land those 10-- those 10 strikes that are "not significant strikes." but I'm like, do you know what that feels like? Not you per se, but--
KEVIN IOLE: Yeah.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Until people who are in those positions knows what it feels like. Then they're going by, OK, I get it now. That's actually a more [MUTED] up position than this position right here that I thought. But I get that because I've been in those positions before. I'm like, dude, your head is ringing. You get-- you have to be there to understand what it's like, to get hit like that, with those 4-ounce gloves, short elbows. You're gonna be like, all right.
KEVIN IOLE: No--
ALJAMAIN STERLING: I would much rather be on the feet. And being able to move my feet and slide away from the impact versus just being stuck there and having to just take the shots, and the ref thinks, oh, it's not that bad. [CHUCKLES] Trust me, it's way worse than people actually think.
KEVIN IOLE: That's why I respect what you guys do so much. Aljamain, I could talk to you all day. Appreciate you, brother. Good luck. UFC-280, Aljamain Sterling versus TJ Dillashaw on the co-main event. Should be a good one. Best of luck to you champ.
ALJAMAIN STERLING: Thank you.
Thanks.