“No more Mr. nice guy…”
It seems everyone’s catching on to the new economic turn of the UFC. Previous nice guys from Tyron Woodley, Demetrius “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, to now Featherweight interim champ Jose Aldo are calling for big money fights! Where did they learn this current trend? Daddy Dana, that’s who.
In a recent interview with Brazilain TV show Revista Combate, Aldo explained that he’s looking for a big money fight, and if it’s not with Mcgregor, his close second would be former lightweight champion and kick heard round the world performer Anthony Pettis.
“I’m already frustrated that it might happen, but we’ll see,” Aldo recently told Brazilian TV show Revista Combate. “Every night I ask ‘give me one more chance to get in there again with him and I know it won’t happen again.’ but if it’s not him, I think I’d prefer to fight Pettis. I with them learned that I don’t have to look at the promotion’s side, the title run. A fight with Pettis would sell a lot more than Holloway.
He’s right. While Max Holloway has been on a 9 fight win streak since losing to Conor McGregor in 2013, the Anthony Pettis match up is a much bigger fight. And while it may be “fair” for Holloway to get the next big matchup, we all know that term is very fluid in the world of UFC. Plus, Aldo held the belt for 5 years and is now the #1 contender in a division where the champion is all but vacant, he should have some say.
“Holloway is way tougher than Pettis today,” Aldo said. “‘Do Bronx’ (Oliveira) was winning the fight, but (his cardio) goes down drastically during the fight. I think that a fight with Pettis would sell a lot and is way easier for me. If I had to choose one of them it would be him because it sells more and I have a better chance, but I respect him.”
“I’m trying to get a fight at this UFC card in New York, but we’ll see what ‘Dede’ (Pederneiras) has to say when he comes back. ‘Dede’ is (in Cleveland) now for a meeting with Dana to decide our future. I hope everything goes right. If it’s not against (McGregor) we fight for the undisputed belt. We’ll see.
Before we get into the issue of whether Jose Aldo is ducking anyone let’s not forget that this fight was set to happen years ago. After seeing Jose Aldo defend his belt against Frankie Edgar at UFC 156, Pettis texted Dana White saying he would accept the fight. Pettis later had to pull out due to a knee injury.
“Something interesting happened about 10 minutes ago,” White said at the postfight news conference. “Anthony Pettis said, ‘I want to go to 145 and fight Jose Aldo.’ He told me he’ll make 145.” –Dana White (2013)
Ultimately it comes down to Dana. Even though the organization has new owners, it seems they’re still leaving him to headline the sport aspect of the UFC. While either fight would be a barn burner, it would be nice to see these two wizards go head to head.
Smart move, or coward’s journey? What do you guys think of Jose Aldo calling out the featherweight newcomer?
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