Aljamain Sterling (photo via UFC / YouTube)

By FCF Staff

With Henry Cejudo having announced he’s retiring, the UFC’s bantamweight title will be up for grabs, and Aljamain Sterling is confident he’ll be one of the men fighting for the vacated belt.

Cejudo shocked the MMA world at UFC 249, when after he stopped Dominick Cruz, he announced he’s retiring. Since then, Sterling spoke with MMA Fighting, and while discussing the chances he’ll be tapped for a title fight next, the contender said this.

“As far as what I can probably reveal, I believe the UFC is gonna have one last conversation with Cejudo just to make sure he’s definitive on retiring and then move on from there,” Sterling said. “I don’t know what’s gonna happen with Petr Yan, because I think he’s in Thailand right now. So I don’t know how the whole thing with the visa issues.

“Obviously, Dana White said he would like to crown a new champion relatively soon. That could be UFC 250, [or] UFC 251. We don’t know yet…”

“Right now, I feel good about my odds,” Sterling added. “I posted a lot of content from my last fight and why I should be the next guy. I’m ranked No. 2 in the division, and my body of work speaks for itself.”

The 30-year-old Sterling (18-3) is coming off a decision win over Pedro Munhoz last summer, and has won four straight fights.