Sterling draws on his own career-threatening surgery to back McGregor's comeback

Aljamain Sterling has offered a measured word of support for Conor McGregor following the knee injury that ended his fight against Max Holloway just seconds into their UFC 329 bout, drawing on his own experience of being written off after career-threatening neck surgery.

Sterling underwent the procedure at arguably the worst possible moment — immediately after winning the UFC bantamweight title for the first time. The surgery addressed years of nerve damage that had caused him severe pain, but it carried significant risk, and his extended recovery fuelled widespread speculation that he would never compete again.

“Many people told me my career was over,” Sterling said. “T.J. Dillashaw, before the fight, he did an interview and was saying he heard that [neck surgery] was the nail in the coffin, and I would never come back. Thankfully, I did and I came back and I felt better. I’ve been able to compete and win a world title the right way. Defended it a couple of times. Here I am a couple of years removed.”

Sterling silenced those doubters by returning to beat Petr Yan in a rematch, cementing his status as champion in his first fight back. That trajectory shapes how he views McGregor’s situation now.

“You always hope that people can come back,” Sterling said. “I don’t want to say be better but at least come back and compete at a high level still. I think that’s what most of us wanted to see. Can Conor actually come back and can he come back and compete at a high level? He’s coming back to fight Max Holloway. That’s no easy return. But with that said, I’ve had many surgeries.”

McGregor had already been absent from the sport for five years after suffering a broken leg in his 2021 trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier. He has confirmed he requires surgery on the knee but insists he intends to fight again.

For Sterling, the physical recovery is only part of the equation. He was candid about the lifestyle choices that could prove just as decisive as the surgery itself.

“I just think as long as he’s doing the right things,” Sterling said. “He doesn’t go back down the dark path and it’s OK to have fun but you can’t be doing that every single day, every other day and getting banged up like that. There’s going to be some diminishing returns but if he does the right thing, he’ll come back.”

McGregor’s previous absence had drawn scrutiny after he dropped out of the UFC’s anti-doping programme during his recovery from the broken leg, with a New York Times report alleging he used banned substances to aid his rehabilitation.