Brian Ortega vs. Aljamain Sterling UFC Shanghai Odds, Time, and Prediction

Aljamain Sterling is a former UFC Bantamweight champion who’s now fighting in the Featherweight Division. His opponent at UFC Shanghai is Brian Ortega, a two-time former title challenger in the 145-pound division. Let’s see who’s gonna do better on August 23.

Brian Ortega vs. Aljamain Sterling Odds

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When, Where, and How to Watch?

• Place: Shanghai Indoor Stadium in Shanghai, China
• Date: Saturday, August 23, 2025
• Time: 3:00 a.m. ET
• How to Watch: ESPN+

Brian Ortega Still Dreaming Title Dreams

Brian Ortega is 16-4-1 overall with all of his losses happening against elite opponents – Max Holloway, Alexander Volkanovski, Yair Rodriguez, and Diego Lopes.

When it comes to his wins, his arguably best performance was against Yair Rodriguez in February last year. He won that fight by submission – arm-triangle choke – in Round 3, for which he earned the Performance of the Night bonus.

Unfortunately for him, in the following fight, he lost to Diego Lopes by unanimous decision. He got beaten up in that fight, so he lost fair and square. If he wants to bounce back, he’ll need to up his game.

Aljamain Sterling Wants to Achieve Featherweight Glory

Aljamain Sterling is 24-5 overall, but most of his success happened in the UFC Bantamweight Division. He became the champ in 2020 and held the championship belt in his possession for another four fights before finally losing it to Sean O’Malley in 2023.

Since that loss, he’s been fighting in the UFC Featherweight Division. It started well for him as he defeated Calvin Kattar in April 2024 by unanimous decision. However, eight months later, he lost to Movsar Evloev by the same method.

It was a wrestling duel in which the two landed a total of 10 takedowns between them. Striking-wise, neither fighter did much. Aljo landed 12 significant strikes in 15 minutes, while absorbing 8.

Brian Ortega vs. Aljamain Sterling Prediction

Brian Ortega is a much better striker than Aljamain Sterling, but Aljo is a much better wrestler. The trouble is that Sterling doesn’t always make use of his TD prowess. Sure, he takes opponents down, but the last time he finished someone with a submission was more than five years ago.

He probably won’t finish Ortega either – this guys’ never been finished by submission. Plus, T-City is also more powerful and much tougher than Aljo. This is why we expect him to beat his UFC Shanghai opponent up and get a win by decision.

Pick: Brian Ortega