Volkanovski's coach wants Aljamain Sterling, not Jean Silva, as next challenger

Alexander Volkanovski's coach, Joe Lopez, says Jean Silva hasn't earned a featherweight title shot. He wants the champion to face Aljamain Sterling instead. Lopez said it in a new Submission Radio interview after Volkanovski's win at UFC 333, and MMA Mania reported it on Sunday.

"Jean Silva makes a lot of noise and he's a great fighter, but I don't think he's earned the spot," Lopez said.

He's "pretty good friends" with Sterling, he said, and has already talked the matchup over with him. "I'd like that Aljo fight," Lopez said. "I've discussed it with him, and we're down for it," he added, as Heavy reported. That's a coach's wish list, not a booking. The UFC hasn't named Volkanovski's next opponent.

Sterling has his own view. "This division is mine. Second belt soon," he wrote on Instagram after UFC 333, according to Heavy.

Why Lopez is picking Sterling

Volkanovski (29-4) stopped Movsar Evloev with punches at 4:54 of the second round on Saturday, Oct. 24, in Abu Dhabi. It was Evloev's first career loss. Yahoo reports that it was Volkanovski's ninth featherweight title-fight win, passing Jose Aldo for the most in the division. He closed at −112, barely a favourite.

With the No. 1 contender beaten, Lopez's case against Silva starts with the rankings. "There's a lot of guys in front of him that have done a lot better, like Aljo himself is up on the rankings," he said. In the last rankings before UFC 333, Sterling was No. 4 and Silva No. 5.

Lopez also questioned Silva's game. "Look, he's a powerful dude and that's all he's got," he said, and he pointed to how Diego Lopes "mauled him" on the ground. Lopes stopped Silva in the second round in September 2025, which is still Silva's only UFC loss.

Silva (18-3) has won twice since. He beat Arnold Allen on a decision in January and submitted Jose Delgado in September. Delgado was an unranked short-notice replacement after Silva's fight with Yair Rodriguez fell through, MMA Sucka noted.

Sterling has to beat Vallejos first

Sterling (26-5) faces Kevin Vallejos on Saturday, Nov. 21, at UFC Qatar, according to Cageside Press. It's the co-main event under Jiri Prochazka vs. Navajo Stirling. Lopez wants the UFC to then "give him a crack at the title because Aljo deserves it."

Since moving up from bantamweight, where he was champion, Sterling has beaten Calvin Kattar, Brian Ortega (at a 153-lb catchweight) and Youssef Zalal (Wikipedia). His one loss was a decision to Evloev in December 2024. He turned down Aaron Pico for UFC 333 because "Vallejos makes way more sense," he told The Ariel Helwani Show.

Vallejos (18-1) is 4-0 in the UFC and was a heavy favourite every time, from −370 to −556. His only pro loss was a decision to Silva on Dana White's Contender Series in 2023. Since 2021, Sterling is 4-1 when the market rated him below 50%. That includes wins at +330 over Petr Yan and +115 over Zalal. CageOracle doesn't have a market price for the Vallejos fight yet.

We think Sterling has the better claim if he beats Vallejos. He was ranked higher going into UFC 333. Silva's win over Allen counts, but his latest came against a short-notice, unranked replacement. Vallejos is unbeaten in the UFC, even if Silva has beaten him once. A win over Volkanovski would make Sterling the first man to hold UFC titles at bantamweight and featherweight. Amanda Nunes did it in the women's divisions, per the UFC champions list.

Volkanovski himself named Silva and Sterling as the nearest contenders before UFC 333. "They're probably closest," he said in an Abu Dhabi interview, via MiddleEasy. At the post-fight press conference, he again asked for a lightweight fight with champion Justin Gaethje. He'd retire after it, "win or lose," BJPenn.com reported. Gaethje hasn't said whether he'll fight again, according to Heavy.