Aljamain Sterling is one of the longest-reigning and dominant champions in recent memory, but he’s never been the big headline for Dana White and the UFC. However, he is still in good standing with UFC’s co-founder and CEO, who even went as far as gifting him a Lamborghini last year. However, there still seems to be a bit of resentment on ‘Aljo’s end, who opened up about the relationship he has with the 55-year-old.

Sterling has his next featherweight fight set against Movsar Evloev, and the heat between these two has already risen to another level. In a recent candid conversation, the ‘Funk Master’ revealed bits about what Dana White thinks about him.

Aljamain Sterling reveals how Dana White pictures him

Aljamain Sterling is a bona fide top-tier fighter who’s defended his title three times. This is way more than Conor McGregor, the UFC’s biggest star, who never defended either of his UFC belts. Despite such a resume, ‘Aljo’ claims that even though there is mutual respect between him and Dana White, the UFC CEO still doesn’t view him as the big eyeball-grabbing big-time headliner.

“Outside of the cameras and the media, I think we’re good. Dana, for me, he’s always been a nice, respectable guy. But when it comes to business, I know I’m not his cash cow,” Aljamain Sterling told Eric Nicksick. “If he can put someone else in the driver’s seat to get his business to where he wants to be, he’s going to do that and I understand it.”

Aljaimain Sterling understands the business mindset of Dana White and hasn’t taken any offense to any decision that the boss has made so far. But that doesn’t take away the fact that he believes that he deserves to be in the spotlight. “I don’t try to take these things personal even though [a] part of me really does want to because it still feels the same… but I can put the ego aside and understand the rationale behind it,” Sterling added.

Meanwhile, he did name one fighter for whom the UFC laid the red carpet. And if you’ve guessed it, it’s bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley.

Sean O’Malley had it easy, claims ‘Funk Master’

It’s no secret that there’s no love lost between Aljamain Sterling and Sean O’Malley. Even after losing the title to ‘Suga’, the former champion is still hesitant to admit that O’Malley has proven enough before he got the title shot at UFC 292. “He fights one ranked guy and gets a title shot, split decision, all be it. This is not me hating, this is calling a spade a spade,” Sterling stated.

Aljamain Sterling claims that it’s only because the UFC has taken a liking to him, which is why Sean O’Malley is in the position where he is today. He claims that the UFC often puts pressure on his opponents. This is an interesting take because a few months ago, footage from UFC’s docuseries on Roku showed Hunter Campbell trying to convince Sterling not to pull out of UFC 292 even when he wasn’t feeling a hundred percent.

Fans did not like that at all and called out Dana and Co. on social media. “UFC wanted to give him the best opportunity they could to become a world champion by hindering and stacking the deck against his opponent,” ‘Funk Master’ added. Now, the interesting thing will be to see what O’Malley will respond with because it seems like they still have unsettled business with each other.

What are your thoughts about Sterling’s UFC career? Do you think he deserves more chances? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.