Aljamain Sterling vs. Bryan Caraway

Round 1
Sterling attacks early with a volley of punches and leaping kicks, but Caraway backpedals out of danger and raises his arms to taunt the “Funkmaster.” Sterling moves to the outside, cutting angles around the perimeter and hitting Caraway with a body kick before diving on a single-leg shot. Caraway hops backward to the fence on one leg and feeds Sterling a few short right hands while defending the takedown. Sterling turns the corner and slides one hook in, pulling Caraway backward to the floor. Now it’s a body triangle from Sterling to secure back-mount. He begins working for a rear-naked choke, can’t get it and slaps on a face crank instead. Caraway won’t tap, so Sterling postures up and drops a few punches before attacking the neck again. Caraway is still in danger here with nearly two minutes remaining in the round, but he’s managed to peel away one hook and is slowly working to escape out the back door. Sterling does well to keep his balance and eventually secures his hooks again. He finishes the round by holding Caraway in a nasty-looking full nelson.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-8 Sterling
Tristen Critchfield scores the round 10-8 Sterling
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-8 Sterling

Round 2
Sterling dives for an early double-leg but has to work his way back up in a hurry after Caraway threatens with a sit-down guillotine choke. Caraway is swinging for the fences, lobbing huge right hands as he steps forward on Sterling, who is keeping his distance and moving around the outside. Sterling lands a front kick to the gut, takes a sweeping left hand on the cheek in return, and now Caraway closes in to shove his unbeaten opponent against the fence. The pace slows at the midway point of the round as Caraway clings to Sterling’s legs but cannot complete the takedown. They fight to the other side of the cage, where “Kid Lightning” finally plants Sterling on the mat with about 90 seconds remaining. Sterling sits and wraps his arms around the legs of the standing Caraway, who tries to turn the corner and take Sterling’s back in a swift move. Sterling blocks the back-take and sits up against a cage post, where he blocks a Caraway choke attempt as time expires.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Caraway
Tristen Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Caraway
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Caraway

Round 3
Sterling stomps at Caraway with a front kick, evades a looping right hook and sprawls on a shot. He puts a right hand behind Caraway’s ear, but there’s not much on the punch. Caraway gets inside on a single-leg and easily dumps Sterling to the floor at the foot of the fence. Sterling sits up and looks to hit the switch, but Caraway’s got his arms around Sterling’s back leg, too, leading to a stalemate. Sterling keeps working and flips Caraway head over heels, but Caraway does the same to Sterling and winds up back on top. Sterling tries a ninja choke as he hits the ground again, but Caraway pulls his head free. Caraway now leans right to left across the body of Sterling, who kicks up his legs to try a reverse triangle choke which leads to nothing. Caraway slowly works his way around to the back of the seated Sterling, and the veteran uses his hooks to stay locked on as Sterling stands up. Caraway adjusts and locks up a body triangle as he works for a choke with 40 seconds left to fight. The bantamweights tumble to the ground in the final moments, and that’s where it ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Caraway (28-28 Draw)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Caraway (28-28 Draw)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Caraway (28-28 Draw)

The Official Result
Bryan Caraway def. Aljamain Sterling via Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) R3 5:00