UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has accused former titleholder Petr Yan of steroid use.
Sterling (20-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) and Yan (16-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) are set to lock horns in the octagon once again in a title unification bout early next year.
The bad blood between the two is legitimate, stemming from the controversial first meeting at UFC 259 in March, when Yan cost himself the belt by getting disqualified with an illegal knee strike on Sterling.
And responding to a tweet from Yan where he promised to beat 'Funk Master', Sterling used a needle emoji to imply 'No Mercy' dopes:
"Yea, fuck that Alga guy. He sucks. Aljo, on the other hand, he can’t wait to fuck you up. Dirty rat," replied Sterling.
'Funk Master' then put out a post saying several athletes from Russia have been caught up in doping scandals over the years:
"One week vs months and years of cheating aint s***. You keep you gains man. I’m use to competing against these athletes. These fighters been cheating for years since the beginning days. They still are, and it’s something you understand but still get p***ed about."
See Aljamain Sterling saying that Russian athletes have been doping over the years below:
Sterling also spoke about Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov, who is said to have spearheaded a state-run doping program in Russia:
"You think the USADA team are flying Americans over there to test their athletes? Lol give me a break. They got a Dr. hiding here in the states, from airing their dirty Olympic doping laundry. No one is outing their athletes without concern for their life."
He concluded by pointing out that former two-time bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw was not exposed by the United States Anti-Doping Agency but by the New York State Athletic Commission:
"Lol call me what you want Bubba. They said the same about TJ Dillashaw. NYSAC caught him that dirty rat. NOT USADA. Don’t worry. I’m still getting back in there against the rat."
Sterling became champion via disqualification at UFC 259 on March 6, 2021. He was scheduled to face Yan at UFC 267 in October but was ruled out due to a neck injury.
In a worst-case scenario, Sterling vs. Yan 2 might happen at UFC 273 a month later.
