Youssef Zalal has set his sights on matching Charles Oliveira's record for most submissions in featherweight history, which currently stands at six. Zalal saw the graphic during Oliveira's fight with Max Holloway and realized he needs just two more submission wins to tie the record. He is particularly motivated to submit Aljamain Sterling at UFC Vegas 116, noting that Sterling has never been submitted in his career. Sterling has only been finished twice in his career, both by strikes (one TKO and one knockout), making a submission victory over him especially meaningful for Zalal.
Youssef Zalal has made no secret of his ambitions heading into UFC Vegas 116, revealing that he is chasing a piece of featherweight history when he faces Aljamain Sterling.
Zalal, known as "The Moroccan Devil," holds a record of 18-6-1 and currently sits at number 12 in the featherweight rankings. The 29-year-old Factory X product fights out of a switch stance and carries a 72-inch reach. He averages 1.4 submission attempts per 15 minutes, a rate that reflects his consistent ground-game aggression throughout his career.
The record in Zalal's crosshairs belongs to Charles Oliveira, who racked up six submission victories at featherweight before moving to lightweight, where the Brazilian now ranks third. Zalal spotted a graphic highlighting Oliveira's mark during Oliveira's recent fight with Max Holloway and quickly calculated that two more submission wins would pull him level. That realization has sharpened his focus considerably heading into the Sterling bout.
Sterling presents a uniquely compelling target for Zalal's goals. The former bantamweight champion has never been submitted across his professional career. His two career stoppages have both come by strikes — one TKO and one knockout — meaning a submission finish would stand as something genuinely unprecedented on his record. Zalal has acknowledged that specific detail as a source of motivation.
Why it matters
- Zalal needs two submission wins to tie Oliveira's featherweight record of six, giving the Vegas 116 matchup an extra layer of historical stakes.
- Sterling's unblemished submission defense makes a tapout victory particularly significant and adds pressure to Zalal's game plan.
- A ranked win over a decorated former champion would almost certainly vault Zalal well inside the featherweight top ten.
