“There’s So Much More at Stake in the World” -Aljamain Sterling Says it is Tough to Focus Ahead of UFC 250

2nd ranked Bantamweight Aljamain Sterling will fight Cory Sandhagen at UFC 250. He knows that a win over ‘The Sandman’ will put him in the driver’s seat for a shot at the vacant title. However, in the pre-fight media interaction, he admitted that given all that’s going on right now, it is tough to maintain focus ahead of UFC 250. 

Aljamain Sterling says there is much more to fighting 

‘Funk Master’ said, “If I’m being 100 percent honest, it’s not easy at all. This fight, it matters, but at the same time, it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things in terms of life. This is just something to do for entertainment for the fans, for myself to provide but other than that, there’s just so much more at stake with everything going on in this world today.” 

He says it is important for fighters to use their platform and not shy away from providing an opinion. 

“I do think it’s very, very important, it’s something significant that we should take upon ourselves. To use the platform to inspire, motivate and just to preach being a good person. I think that’s really what it comes down to. You don’t have to get into, ‘I’m a leftist or a rightist, I’m Democrat or Republican.’ You don’t have to get into that kind of nitty-gritty type of detail, but at the same time to show that you do have a stance is very, very important. To preach the good word of just being a good human being, being a humanitarian.”

Sterling says people need to empathize with others and see things from the point of view. 

“There’s a lot of friction cause we are unable to pull ourselves back and look at the bigger picture and see each other’s point of view from a different perspective, a different lens. Wearing their shoes for a day and seeing what it’s like to be a black man. You would never know what that’s like unless you’re in this body.”  

He opines that unless this is done it is unfair to downplay what other people believe in. Furthermore, the UFC Bantamweight contender revealed that he has had mixed experiences with cops.

“I’ve had negative experiences with cops. I’ve had positive experiences with cops and have friends who are cops today. I’m an FDNY hopeful. So I understand the camaraderie between cops where they always look out for one another. I do think there’s a lot of things that need to be said. It’s like an onion. There’s so many layers that need to be peeled back in order to rightfully get to the core of this. I hope we can figure out the reforms, educate and really retrain our police officers.”

Finally, he elaborates on how everyone does the same thing like everyone’s else and how everyone has a heart and sums up. “I think that we’re all the same.“

What is your take on ‘Funk Master’s stance on the issue?