When Aljamain Sterling hit the Octagon at UFC 259 this past weekend, he did so minus one very familiar face in his corner. Longtime coach Ray Longo was there, but former welterweight champion Matt Serra was watching the action from home.
Serra has been a fixture in Sterling’s cornering crew for most (if not all) of his UFC run. But it seems the newly minted bantamweight champion felt it was time for to make a change. And when it came to assembling the team for his first UFC title fight, Serra was left sitting on the sidelines.
In a recent episode of his UFC Unfiltered podcast, Serra spoke about the surprise decision—one that apparently left him feeling a bit blindsided and “hurt” by the fighter he had supported for so long.