Overview
- Sterling won a unanimous decision (49-45 on all cards) in Saturday’s UFC Vegas 116 main event at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
- Across five rounds he relied on takedowns, back control and steady ground-and-pound, including a dominant 10-8 fourth round.
- Zalal’s best moment came in the third round with a tight guillotine and back control, yet he could not match Sterling’s pace on the mat.
- After the fight Sterling called out Movsar Evloev and champion Alexander Volkanovski, and he is now 3-1 since moving to featherweight.
- Sterling said he had considered retiring if he suffered a bad loss, while Zalal’s eight-fight streak ended as he vowed to regroup.