Aljamain Sterling shows off stitches inside bottom lip after training incident, jokes about 2023 return

Aljamain Sterling received stitches after a recent incident in the training room.

On Monday, the UFC bantamweight champion posted pictures on social media of a nasty cut sustained during a training session. According to Sterling, the damage occurred during his first roll on the mats, unfortunately from a familiar strike.

“Stitches or nah?” Sterling wrote on Twitter. “Very first roll of the night. Courtesy of… you guessed it! Another knee to the face! I really don’t knee’d this right now!”

Stitches or nah? Very first roll of the night. Courtesy of… you guessed it! Another knee to the face! I really don’t knee’d this right now! pic.twitter.com/Iz1vpzwxW3

— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) November 23, 2021

Infamously, Sterling was crowned champion at UFC 259 after an illegal knee to the head from Petr Yan led to a disqualification.

Apparently, a few stitches were necessary for the cut on the inside of Sterling’s lip, as he posted another set of pictures on social media on Tuesday afternoon, showing off before and after pictures receiving medical attention.

3 stitches.
Good as new.
Doc says back in 2023. pic.twitter.com/C1O51Pul8W

— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) November 23, 2021

“3 stitches. Good as new. Doc says back in 2023.“

Sterling had to pull out of UFC 267 due to lingering nerve issues from neck surgery and has been on the road to recovery in preparation to face Yan, who was crowned interim champion at the pay-per-view event by defeating Corey Sandhagen.

After pulling out of the fight, Sterling clarified that no new injury occurred, but he experienced fatigue in training and wanted to push the fight back to the end of 2021.

Sterling joked his lip damage will prolong his return until 2023, poking fun at those who believe he is avoiding the inevitable rematch with Yan. It is unlikely the cut will delay his return to the cage, which has not yet been determined.