Sterling vs Dillashaw

Who won Sterling vs Dillashaw?

Aljamain Sterling beat T.J. Dillashaw by knockout in the 2nd round during the co-main event of UFC 280, on Saturday 22nd October 2022 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 5 rounds in the Bantamweight division, which meant the weight limit was 135 pounds (9.6 stone or 61.2 KG).

This contest was for the UFC Bantamweight championship.

Sterling vs Dillashaw stats

Aljamain Sterling stepped into the octagon with a record of 21 wins, 3 losses and 0 draws, 2 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 8 by submission.

T.J. Dillashaw made his way to the cage with a record of 17 wins, 4 losses and 0 draws, 8 of those wins coming by knock out and 3 by submission.

This was Aljamain Sterling's 21st fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2014.

Aljamain Sterling's UFC record stood at 16-5-0, while T.J. Dillashaw's came in at 13-5-0.

The stats suggested Dillashaw had a massive power advantage over Sterling, boasting a 47% knock out percentage over Sterling's 10%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Sterling had an advantage over Dillashaw, with a 38% submission rate over Dillashaw's 18%.

Aljamain Sterling was the younger man by 4 years, at 35 years old.

Sterling had a height advantage of 1 inch over Dillashaw. That also extended to a 3-inch reach advantage.

Sterling was arguably the more experienced fighter, having had 3 more fights, and made his debut in 2011, 1 year later than Dillashaw, whose first professional fight was in 2010. He had fought 21 more professional rounds, 79 to Dillashaw's 58.

Sterling vs Dillashaw form

Dillashaw had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 2 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Cory Sandhagen at UFC Vegas 32 on 24th July 2021 by split decision in their 5 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, he had lost to Henry Cejudo at UFC on ESPN+ 1 on 19th January 2019 by knockout in the 1st round in their UFC Flyweight championship fight at Barclays Center, Brooklyn.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Cody Garbrandt at UFC 227 on 4th August 2018 by knockout in the 1st round in their UFC Bantamweight championship fight at Staples Center, Los Angeles.

Before that, he had defeated Cody Garbrandt at UFC 217 on 4th November 2017 by knockout in the 2nd round in their UFC Bantamweight championship fight at Madison Square Garden, New York City.

He was victorious against Raphael Assuncao at UFC 200 on 9th July 2016 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas.

Activity check

Dillashaw's last 5 fights had come over a period of 8 years, 11 months and 18 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year, 9 months and 17 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 12 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.4 rounds on average.

What were the odds on Sterling vs Dillashaw?

Aljamain Sterling was a 57/100 (-180) favourite going into the contest, while T.J. Dillashaw made his way into the ring at 3/2 (+150) with oddsmakers.