Aljamain Sterling and Jon Jones share a history that predates their rise in MMA, a bond that goes back to their roots before they became titans of the sport. Both have found immense success in their respective divisions, with Jones earning GOAT status according to Dana White. In fact,

Bones even played a key role in contributing to Sterling’s MMA career. However, Sterling recently hit an unfortunate roadblock. Scheduled to fight the undefeated Movsar Evloev at UFC 307, Sterling’s plans came crashing down when he suffered an injury just days before the event—leaving Dana White and the MMA community stunned.

This bout was supposed to be Sterling’s second foray into the featherweight division, following his win over Calvin Kattar at UFC 300. It was a highly anticipated fight that had the fans excited to see Sterling test himself against another undefeated fighter. But, with the injury, Sterling opted to step back, recover properly, and make his return stronger.

Despite this setback, FunkMaster has remained active, attending interviews and mapping out his future plans. In one recent interview, Sterling took a nostalgic turn, recalling his friendship with Jon Jones and how Bones helped guide him early in his career. It’s a reminder that even in a sport as brutal and competitive as MMA, bonds and mentorships can shape careers and create lifelong connections.

Aljamain Sterling spills the beans on his friendship with Jon Jones

Aljo was seen in the interview with The Schmo talking about his injury and what the medical team advised him to do. Another interesting topic was his and Jon Jones’s partying after UFC 306.  The former UFC Bantamweight Champion opened up about the whole ordeal and even gave a sneak peek into his return plans. Sterling was supposed to face Evloev in the pivotal fight but he injured his elbow. Fortunately, the injury would not require any surgery leading him to hope for a December return. Furthermore, he is already into rehab and trying to stay prepared for Evloev. On top of that, he reminisced about the old days with Jones when they went to the same college and even spoke about his party scene with the heavyweight legend. 

He said, “ We went to college together one semester. I transferred, he was training down the road from my new college at SUNY Cortland when I left SUNY Morsville and I never stopped training since that day. And here I am, it is kind of crazy to think that two guys from New York him being from upstate, me being from Long Island both becoming champs, and obviously him in a more dominating fashion but it’s just cool. The same college for a little bit and yeah just I like to see people that I know win.”

Sterling and Jones went to the same school in New York and Jones even invited him to come train with him in Albuquerque, N.M.“Jon Jones actually invited me to come down when I was debating whether or not to go back home to Long Island after school was over and trying to figure out where I want to move,” he had informed MMA Junkie Radio. He even described the experience partying with Jones. He recalled that he went to the party with Merab Dvalishvili after a monumental win for the latter at UFC Noche. ‘Funkmaster’ said that Jones did not visit for a long time but he caught up with his old friend and  “it was just love.”

However apart from this happy time, there are some concerning things to think about right now. Evloev might not be an option for him anymore because he is already searching for a replacement for UFC 307 even though nothing has been made official. Sterling is still looking ahead and even mentioned other opponents like Diego Lopez or Brian Ortega. In the meantime, while he recuperates, he also revealed UFC and Dana White’s reaction to his injury.

Aljamain Sterling disclosed UFC’s reaction to his injury

While speaking in the same interview Sterling spoke about the reaction that Dana White had to his injury. He emphasized that the injury was not so critical but it did need a lot of care and rest. When it came to the UFC and the boss they were not happy but they gave him enough time to make his decision.

“The UFC said the UFC medical team advised me to give it a week. I gave it a week, and still, because it happened on Thursday—I gave it that whole week and got stem cells on a Friday. Um, didn’t feel like much was changing. I was like, ‘Dude, I don’t know,’ because I got the MRI the same day the injury happened, because I freaked out,” said Sterling.

The former champion also added that even though one week had gone by there was no improvement. He decided to speak to the UFC and told them the truth. He even spoke to Hunter Campbell and made his call. ͏’FunkMaster’ was handed a defeat by Sean O’Malley when he fought injured the last time. This is the reason he might have not wanted repeat the same mistake again. 

Now that the fight has been canceled between him and Evloev, will it be rescheduled later? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.