Youssef Zalal: Aljamain Sterling has an advantage at UFC Vegas 116

Youssef Zalal is familiar with Aljamain Sterling both personally and in the training room, but all that will be put aside when they meet in Saturday's UFC Fight Night 274 headliner.

Zalal (18-5-1 MMA, 8-3-1 UFC) gets his first main event opportunity when he takes on former bantamweight champion Sterling (25-5 MMA, 17-5 UFC) in a key featherweight bout at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas (Paramount+).

After a disappointing first octagon run in his early 20s, Zalal has broken out since returning to the promotion for a second stint in February 2024. He's 5-0 with four submissions, and now gets a firm test in the form of Sterling, who is one of the most successful lower-weight fighters in UFC history.

It's a lot to take on, and Zalal's first five-rounder in the UFC happening at the Meta APEX means the smaller octagon will be used for the event. That gives him less space to work his movement-heavy standup style, but also doesn't deter him from knowing he can execute.

"I think (the small cage) probably gives him more an advantage than anything," Zalal told MMA Junkie on Monday. "But it's a fight. You get to figure out all the puzzles and the chess match and stuff. With me, you better bring your A-game and your best chess game and everything. If you don't, I will find an opportunity to find my finish and an opportunity to pick you apart for five rounds. I think that's what excites me. I'm in your world. Let's see how good your world is. I'm going to show you how good my world is."

Zalal, 29, is not only looking to get the win this weekend – he wants to make it emphatic. Sterling, 36, has never been submitted or choked unconscious in his MMA career, and if Zalal could change that, he would not only move one step closer to Charles Oliveira's all-time 145-pound submission record, but he would let the division and world know he's a true title threat.

"Two more and I get to tie (Oliveira) for most submissions in featherweight history," Zalal said. "Nobody ever submitted Aljamain Sterling. Nobody in his whole career. He's only been finished twice with knockouts – one was knockout, one was TKO. That's a big cap in my back. I think if I had to pick I want to pick that sub. I love Charles. Charles is my boy. He's one of the legends and it would be an honor just to be in the same conversation as him. I can't wait to keep doing that and this is what the sport is all about, trying to break as many records as possible.