Athletes
Navajo Stirling Is Better For The Experience
New Zealander’s First Three UFC Fights Brought Three Decision Wins, And Helped Him Take His Game To A New Level.
New Zealand’s Navajo Stirling arrived in the UFC as a hot prospect. Now, after logging 45 minutes inside the Octagon, he’s ready to level up as he makes his way up the light heavyweight division.
Stirling is looking to pick up the fourth win of his UFC career after making an impressive start to life on the big stage. Three fights and three wins have gotten his career off to a great start. Now he’s in town with his City Kickboxing teammate, former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, as both men look to score important victories in Seattle on Saturday night.
Having a teammate on the same fight card is always a benefit, but having a former world champion who operates close enough to his own weight class that they can physically work together in training has been a real boon for Stirling, who said that their relationship had gotten even stronger during the course of their training camp.
“It’s just like when you build that camaraderie even more just me and him did a lot of training together, partner training, and the fact that we've kind of gone through the hardships of training camp side by side the whole way through just brought us that much closer,” he explained. “We're kind of feeding off each other's energy, and we're just looking to shine out there, man, and show everyone who we are and City Kickboxing and everything that our gym represents.”
Adesanya is the more seasoned operator of the pair, with the 36-year-old experiencing the full rollercoaster ride of making it to the top, losing his crown, then battling back to win it again. His exploits in the Octagon have already seen him inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
Stirling, meanwhile, still has his career ahead of him, and he’s hoping that he can benefit from Adesanya’s advice and experience as he looks to follow in his teammate’s footsteps on the world stage. That said, he hopes his own youthful energy will benefit Adesanya, too.
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Yeah, man, I think it's just a young energy that I bring,” he said “I'm very young and ambitious, and got that chip on my shoulder to prove myself. And it inspires him a little bit, just to kind of remember what it was like when he was coming up, as well. And I'm able to feed off just like the way he goes through things, and he's done everything before, he's gone through the ups and downs. So I can always take little pieces from him in that way. It's a good relationship to have.”
After arriving in the UFC on a run of knockouts, Stirling’s first three fights in the Octagon have all gone to the judges. It’s a change he’s had to adjust to, but he said having to fight his way through those nine rounds has been a valuable experience as he looks to establish himself in the light heavyweight division before making his way towards the division’s top contenders.
“It’s been a learning process for me in the UFC Octagon,” he admitted. “’I’ve had a delay to my stardom a little bit because of that, and that's fine. It's been good because it's been able to let me know that it's not always just about being super-high on these big fanatic wins, but to take all of that experience, come back to the drawing board, and then look to really make a big improvement. I feel like I've gone about and done that in the previous year, and I'm really looking to showcase a brand new Navajo Stirling.”
Looking back at those three wins, Stirling pinpointed his overall conditioning as one area that needed improvement, and he’s taken the necessary steps to ensure he can operate at full power for the full 15-minute duration.
“I felt like I wasn't as fitness prepared,” he explained. “I'm not even at my best in terms of my fitness in those fights, and I was still able to outlast the opponents. I was still fitter than my other opponents, and now that I've gone back to the drawing board and worked on that… Coming into this fight, if it is to go later, I believe I'll have the finishing touch now coming into, like, the second and third and later, later rounds. And yeah, I'm really banking in on my experience. I can just punch in hard from the start and know that I'm gonna last the whole way.”
While the lack of a UFC finish may be something Stirling is keen to address, there’s plenty of upside from racking up valuable Octagon time, especially early in his UFC career. It’s given Stirling plenty of opportunity to settle into life on the sport’s biggest stage, and now, as he heads into his fourth fight as a UFC athlete, he’s ready to put that experience to good use.
“Now it's gonna be more fights in the UFC than I had outside of the UFC, which is kind of crazy when you think about it – I've only been in the UFC for about a year and a half,” he said.“Honestly, I've kind of had to learn on the job, but as a bigger guy, I feel like you have to do that. A lot of the other guys from around the world have a lot more experience, but I've had higher-level training, and I still have my pro kickboxing background to go on.
“I've got all the tools. So now, after going to three rounds for three of my fights, against good opponents, (it) has really tanked up my experience. And I think now it's just time to dominate.”
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Stirling’s next test comes in the form of fellow Contender Series graduate Bruno Lopes. The 32-year-old Brazilian is a former LFA light heavyweight champion with 11 finishes from his 14 career wins – six by knockout and five by submission.
It’s the sort of opposition that offers a challenge across all facets of Stirling’s skillset, and he’s looking forward to facing the Brazilian’s aggression with technique and tactical nous on fight night.
“He's an experienced guy,” he said. “Hardy Brazilian. Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, (they’re) just crazy strikers on the feet – they really bring the entertainment… I fought a Brazilian on my last fight, and yeah, they do definitely have that similar trait every time – they have that do or die mentality. I believe he's going to give it his all to try and finish me and get me out of there, and I'm looking to walk him into space, and really take advantage of that.”
While he’s primarily known as a striker, Stirling said he relishes the grappling side of MMA, and he’ll head into Saturday night boosted by the knowledge that he’s been holding his own on the City Kickboxing mats with a host of high-level operators.
“I just think my counter striking, my distance management and my takedown defense is going to be a huge key, and just being able to wrestle back in, as well, is going to really play on his mind,” he said. “I think a lot of guys try to take me down, and when they realize they can't, and then they've initiated that grapple, I enjoy grappling myself, as well. So when I get a feel for them, I always feel like, ‘Oh, these guys aren't as good as some of my teammates.’ And so when I take them down and go to work, it really hurts their mental and then they start to lose belief. So yeah, that's where I feel like I have the advantage.”
Stirling sees Saturday night as an opportunity to make the jump from prospect to fringe contender. A big win over a seasoned, dangerous finisher like Lopes should see his stock rise, and Stirling says if he gets the win and performance he’s expecting to deliver in Seattle, he’ll be calling for bigger opportunities later in 2026.
"I just feel like I definitely want to make those leaps,” he said. ”I just feel like I need those performances to really showcase that I am ready for a top 15 spot. I think maybe one more after this gets a really good name.
“That's another thing – I want to take out some names after this. I think I've had enough time fighting other prospects on the roster, but now it's time to take out some names. And I've got a few names in mind that I'll probably call out after this fight. And, yeah, we'll see what happens from there.”
Stirling arrived in the UFC with the confidence of a fighter who sees himself at the top of the sport later in his career. Now, after picking up valuable experience and upgrading his arsenal, the 28-year-old from Auckland said the time has come to break from the pack and announce himself as a rising star of the light heavyweight division.
“I believe I've shown great skills, and I haven't even reached the surface of what I'm capable of,” he stated. “With my youth and just where I'm going, and the way I fight and the traits that I bring to the cage, I think I have a real shot at becoming a champion – not just a champion, but a great champion at that.
“I have the team around me and the resources. We've done it before, and yeah, who's to say that I can't do that?”
UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs Pyfer took place live from Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington on March 28, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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