UFC Fight Night 128 results: Aljamain Sterling dominates previously unbeaten Brett Johns

There were moments of flashy striking, but ultimately it was Aljamain Sterling’s control over Brett Johns that cost Johns his unbeaten record.

Sterling (15-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) took a unanimous decision from Johns (15-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) with a trio of 30-27 scores. Although both fighters landed solid strikes at times, Sterling’s wrestling seemed to win the day.

The bantamweight bout was part of the main card of today’s UFC Fight Night 128 event at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. It aired on FS1 following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Johns worked kicks early, but Sterling did the same. Johns caught a kick early and tried to throw Sterling off his feet, but couldn’t. Instead, a moment later he put together a solid combination. Sterling controlled the range, then worked for a body lock. But Johns used it to take the fight to the canvas and got on top. But while holding on, Johns lost the position and Sterling reversed to get on top. Johns got back to his feet, but found himself stifled against the cage. He broke free with 75 seconds left and got a takedown with 20 seconds left, but found himself fighting off a Sterling choke attempt.

Johns landed a jumping knee in the first 30 seconds of the first round and used it to eventually work for a takedown. But Sterling easily controlled Johns’ effort there and worked back to his feet. Sterling put a combination together on the break and landed a bunch of punches. Johns fired back with a right, only to eat big jabs from Sterling. Midway through, Sterling dropped for a takedown but couldn’t get it right away. Thirty seconds later, he did. But Johns got back up quickly. They got caught in a stalemate on the fence, but the referee broke them apart with a minute left. Fancy strikes from both fighters down the stretch didn’t land, but looked fun.

Sterling kicked the legs early, then shot for a single-leg takedown. He eventually got it and worked to take Johns’ back. Sterling outwrestled Johns for the next couple minutes until Liam Kerrigan again separated them with 1:40 left. Johns swung for a home run, but Sterling locked him up again. A big takedown landed for Sterling with 30 seconds left to seal the deal.

Sterling got back in the win column after a December loss and has won three of his past four fights. Johns lost for the first time in his career.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 128 results include:

• Aljamain Sterling def. Brett Johns via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Dan Hooker def. Jim Miller via knockout (knee, punch) – Round 1, 3:00
• Ryan LaFlare def. Alex Garcia via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Ricky Simon def. Merab Dvalishvili via TKO – Round 3, 5:00
• Siyar Bahadurzada def. Luan Chagas via knockout (body kick, punch) – Round 2, 2:40
• Corey Anderson def. Patrick Cummins via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
• Tony Martin def. Keita Nakamura via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

For complete covearge of UFC Fight Night 128, check out the UFC Events section of the site.