Aljamain Sterling vs. Renan Barão: What will go down:

Will 'The Baron' reinstate himself in title contention?  

A 140lbs Catchweight contest between the exciting Aljamain Sterling and former Bantamweight kingpin Renan 'The Baron' Barão is featured on the Prelims of UFC 214 this weekend in Anaheim, California, after the California State Athletic Commission refused to sanction at bout at 135lbs, after Barão's UFC 177 fiasco, which seen him replaced with Joe Soto ahead of his bout with T.J. Dillashaw  due to weight cutting issues. The Brazilian grappler's opponent Sterling, recovered from consecutive split decision losses to Bryan Caraway and top contender Raphael Assunção, as he picked up a win against Augusto Mendes in April. Barão tested the waters at Featherweight as of recent times, losing to the hard hitting Jeremy Stephens, before overcoming Phillipe Nover in his native Brazil.

New York native Aljamain Sterling, or 'The Funk Master' has a couple of really notable victories so far in his young UFC career, stopping both Takeya Mizugaki via arm-triangle and Johny Eduardo with a nasty guillotine. Sterling is a member of the Matt Serra-Ray Longo Fight Team, where he is a purple belt in BJJ under the former, but is a NCAA Division III Wrestler since his youth. Currently occupying the #8 rank in the Bantamweight division, an impressive win for Sterling could see him feature against former title contender John Dodson, or Jimmie Rivera who dispatched Thomas Almeida last weekend.

Once regarded as arguably the greatest mixed-martial artists on the planet, Rio Grande do Notre native Barão, is a former UFC Interim Bantamweight and Undisputed champion, defending the Interim title against Michael McDonald with an arm-triangle before scoring an incredible spinning back kick knockout win over Eddie Wineland, allowing him to successfully defend the undisputed crown against former foe Urijah Faber. Barão then faced American wrestler T.J. Dillashaw in what was seen a shot another routine title defence, before a head kick from Dillshaw ended a 31 fight win streak for Barão. Despite Renan's masterful striking, he is predominantly a submission specialist, holding a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the reknowed Andre Pederneiras. With 15 separate submissions to his name, the Nova União fighter has forced the tap from Chris Cariaso, Brad Pickett, Mitch Gagnon and Anthony Leone in his so far illustrious career.

When Sterling and Barão clash heads, I see Renan most definitely dominating the striking exchanges and the possible grappling matchup, leaving Sterling cautious when utilising his wrestling background. A win for either man would be huge for their career after a couple of recent falters, more so for Barão I believe.

Renan Barão via split decision.

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