Sterling Weighed Diego Lopes Fight After UFC 307 Exit
In September 2024, Aljamain Sterling was weighing a possible fight with Diego Lopes after withdrawing from a planned UFC 307 bout with Movsar Evloev, as MMA Junkie reported at the time. The Lopes matchup never came together. Sterling instead fought Evloev at UFC 310, then went on to score featherweight decision wins over Brian Ortega and Youssef Zalal.
The Lopes matchup was an option, not an agreement
Sterling had been scheduled to face Evloev at UFC 307 but withdrew after sustaining an elbow injury in training. In comments reported at the time, he said Lopes was an appealing alternative if the Evloev fight could not be rebooked. Lopes had just defeated Brian Ortega at UFC 306, making him a rising name in the featherweight mix. The two never fought. MMA Junkie’s 2024 report
Sterling and Evloev met at UFC 310
The Evloev matchup was rescheduled for December 7, 2024. Evloev won the three-round fight by unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring it 29–28. That result marked the first chapter after Sterling’s move to featherweight and ended his immediate path toward a title shot. UFC 310 main-card results
Wins over Ortega and Zalal followed
Sterling rebounded against Ortega on August 23, 2025, winning a unanimous decision in a bout held at a 153-pound catchweight after Ortega missed the featherweight limit. Sterling then defeated Youssef Zalal by unanimous decision in the UFC Fight Night main event on April 25, 2026; all three judges scored that contest 49–45. UFC Shanghai scorecards · UFC vs. Zalal scorecards
A speculative callout, then a different route
The original discussion captured Sterling’s interest in a high-profile featherweight matchup while his schedule was unsettled. Since then, he has fought Evloev, Ortega and Zalal, and won two of those three bouts. The proposed Lopes fight remains a “what if” rather than a completed booking or result.
