Aljamain sterling will face T.J. Dillashaw in the next UFC 279, fight. This is scheduled to occur on September 10, at a place yet to be confirmed.
Multiple people who were familiar with the plans of the promotion confirmed that the fight was being planned when they spoke to MMA Fighting Wednesday. At this point, no contracts were signed or issued.
News of the fight was first reported by MMA Junkie.
Sterling will look for the second consecutive defense of his bantamweight title after earning a win over Petr Yan in April, which settled a longstanding rivalry between them after their first fight ended with a disqualification. On that night, Yan blasted Sterling with an illegal knee that cost him the 135-pound title but the New York native solidified his status as champion with a victory in the rematch.
Sterling won seven of his most recent fights.
As for Dillashaw, the ex-bantamweight champion will attempt to reclaim a title he was forced to relinquish after testing positive for a banned substance back in 2019. Dillashaw gave up the belt just before he was issued a two-year suspension after testing positive for recombinant human erythropoietin — better known as EPO — following a loss to former flyweight king Henry Cejudo in his bid to become a two-division champion.
Dillashaw won a split decision against Cory Sandhagen in his July 2021, return, but suffered from a serious knee injury which kept him out of action for most of the year. Dillashaw, now that he is healthy and back in action after his two previous titles reigns, will be aiming to win the bantamweight title for the third consecutive time.
While UFC 279 is expected to take place on Sept. 10, the UFC has not solidified a location for the event, although the card is not expected to happen in Las Vegas.
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