Aljamain Sterling sounds like he knows that the objective—even if the UFC, fight fans and his fellow competitors don’t like it—is to be as healthy and prepared as possible when defending his UFC title. And the reason couldn’t be more simple: Money.
Sterling is coming off a UFC 280 win over T.J. Dillashaw. Looking at how that fight played out, with Sterling absorbing a total of 13 strikes over the 8:44 the bout lasted, it would be easy to assume that the UFC bantamweight titleholder would be able to get back to action in a hurry.
That would be the best path to please the fans, and perhaps even the best past to pleasing the UFC.