Rabat – Youssef Zalal enters the Octagon this Saturday to face former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, aiming to secure his fifth consecutive submission since returning to the UFC.
Serving as the evening’s main event, the featherweight bout will take place at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas for UFC Fight Night 274.
Zalal has made it clear that he prefers a submission over a knockout this Saturday. For him, forcing the tap will prove that he is the best grappler in the weight class.
Zalal is currently chasing the record for the most submissions in UFC featherweight history, a title held by the legendary Charles Oliveira.
“Oliveira still has the featherweight’s most submissions,” Zalal told MMA Junkie in an interview on Monday. “And I was like, damn, I see my name right there. Two more Youssef, you get tie, nobody ever submitted Aljamain in his whole career… So, I think if I had to pick, I would pick that sub,” he added.
Charles Oliveira has held the featherweight submission record of six for over a decade, despite moving up in weight. Zalal currently sits in second place with four, tied with veterans Brian Ortega and Makwan Amirkhani.
A submission win over Aljamain Sterling would move Zalal into sole possession of second place. Since Oliveira is unlikely to return to the featherweight division, Zalal is confident he will eventually surpass “Do Bronx” to claim the all-time record.
The “Moroccan Devil” also wants to be the first person to ever submit Aljamain Sterling. While Sterling has been stopped two times before, it has always been by knockout, never by submission.
“100% [will earn three more submissions before retirement]. I love Charles,” Zalal said. “Charles is my boy, one of the legends. It would be an honor just to be in the same conversation.”
Standing at 178 cm, The Moroccan fighter currently holds a professional MMA record of 18 wins, five losses, and one draw. Meanwhile, the American Sterling stands at 170 cm and boasts a professional MMA record of 25 wins and five losses, featuring eight career submission victories.
With the featherweight submission record and divisional rankings on the line, Saturday’s main event is a high-stakes clash of legacies.
