Aljamain Sterling re-signs with the UFC: 'I'm happy with the decision'

After months of negotiations, bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling announced Monday on The MMA Hour that he has re-signed with the UFC.

Up until now, Sterling was one of the hottest free agents in mixed martial arts. Heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem recently announced his new UFC contract, and former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson recently jumped ship to Bellator MMA.

"The contract was a lot more lucrative than the original offer," Sterling told Ariel Helwani. "In terms of the upfront money and the back end money in terms of becoming the champ and things like that, there was a lot more to offer with those guys. Ultimately, there are a whole bunch of different things that go into it. The marketing, the publicity, and of course, you can't really put a value on the UFC name. That alone has a value of itself. If you go out there and say, 'I fight for the UFC,' people automatically know exactly what that is. Whether or not they watch it, but they know exactly what that is.

"Ultimately, I think I made the right decision. I got some extra incentives in there, so I'm happy with the decision I made. I'm excited, because I honestly believe I'm the best guy in the division."

Sterling (12-0) is an undefeated 135-pound contender and is coming off a second-round submission victory over Johnny Eduardo at UFC Fight Night 80 this past December. Prior to that, he picked up the biggest win of his career with a late stoppage over Takeya Mizugaki.

The Funk Master's next bout hasn't been announced at this time.