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Conor McGregor Supported by Rory MacDonald in Battle with UFC

UFC welterweight Rory MacDonald tweeted his support for featherweight champion Conor McGregor on Saturday after the UFC pulled McGregor from his scheduled rematch with Nate Diaz at UFC 200 for refusing to meet certain promotional obligations befor…

He continued, talking about the balance of power and influence in MMA:

UFC lightweight Michael Johnson countered that McGregor could afford to take a stand, but MacDonald continued to offer his support for the featherweight champion:

On Friday, UFC President Dana White spoke about the decision to pull McGregor from his rematch with Diaz, per ESPN.com:

We try to give as much leeway as we can on things, but you have to show up and promote the fight. Is it too much to ask to try to shoot a commercial for the fight? A lot of these guys came here from different parts of the world. But, you know, these guys all came. They have better things to do, and they’re here. It’s part of the job.

We gave Conor every opportunity in the world to get here, too. We get criticized a lot for bending too much for Conor, and we do. Conor is a guy who has stepped up and fought big fights on short notice, and I respect Conor very much as a fighter, and I like him, but you have to show up and do this stuff.

McGregor offered a quick reply on Twitter, noting: “Everyone flew in. Respect. But not everyone up there made the company $400 million in eight months.”

McGregor’s stance in this particular instance—and MacDonald’s defense of that stance—has the potential to become a major issue between the UFC and its fighters. MacDonald, who is 18-3 in his fighting career and 9-3 in the UFC, has continued to evaluate his worth within the company.

“Martial arts was always a fun thing; I never thought about money,” he told Steven Marrocco and Mike Bohn of MMAJunkie.com. “But now it’s come to a point where I’ve done a lot of things, and my value is up there. I thank the UFC for the opportunities that brought me to that. I’d just like to be compensated and live a comfortable life for my family and provide for them.”

MacDonald’s upcoming fight against Stephen Thompson on June 18 is his final bout under his current contract with the UFC. It would appear the fighter will be using McGregor’s current standoff with the organization as inspiration to earn a more lucrative contract for himself.

“The perfect scenario is that I have the performance of my life against Stephen, re-sign with the UFC with the numbers I want and fight for the title and win,” MacDonald told MMAJunkie.com. “Then, I’m sitting pretty.”

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Conor McGregor Pulled from UFC 200: Latest Details, Comments, Reaction

The UFC announced on Tuesday evening that it has pulled Conor McGregor from UFC 200 on July 9.
UFC President Dana White said on SportsCenter that the organization pulled McGregor from the card because he “refused to fly to [Las] Vegas fo…

The UFC announced on Tuesday evening that it has pulled Conor McGregor from UFC 200 on July 9.

UFC President Dana White said on SportsCenter that the organization pulled McGregor from the card because he “refused to fly to [Las] Vegas for promotional stuff,” per Jeremy Botter of the Houston Chronicle.

White also spoke with Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports:

Ben Fowlkes of USA Today isn’t buying that explanation, however:

McGregor was scheduled to face Nate Diaz in a rematch of their welterweight bout from UFC 196 in March. Diaz won that fight by submission.

The news comes on the heels of McGregor announcing on Twitter that he planned to retire:

His coach, John Kavanagh, also tweeted a cryptic message that suggested McGregor was going to hang up his proverbial gloves:

One factor in this saga might be the death of Joao Carvalho, who died after head injuries he suffered in his April 9 fight against Charlie Ward. McGregor was in the crowd in Dublin for that fight, supporting his teammate Ward.

After Carvalho’s death, he posted the following on his Facebook page:

To see a young man doing what he loves, competing for a chance at a better life, and then to have it taken away is truly heartbreaking. We are just men and women doing something we love in the hope of a better life for ourselves and our families. Nobody involved in combat sports of any kind wants to see this. It is such a rare occurrence that I don’t know how to take this.

It’s unclear if that experience has affected McGregor’s decision to announce his retirement or if he simply wanted a way out of UFC 200. Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com speculated on that front:

The UFC and MMA fans will certainly be hoping McGregor’s retirement isn’t a permanent one. He remains the UFC featherweight champion and has a 19-3 professional record and just one loss in the UFC since joining the organization in 2013.

He’s one of the sport’s biggest stars and has one of the most brash and marketable personalities, so the UFC would be losing a major superstar if his retirement is permanent. Given the unusual and abrupt way this situation has played out, it’s likely there are a few more twists and turns yet to come.

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Jon Jones Hires a Full-Time Driver After Recent Traffic Citations

MMA fighter and former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has hired his nutritionist, Lou Giordano, to also serve as his full-time driver after a recent incident that resulted in his being issued five tickets for allegedly drag racing.
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“I have him here and he’s driving me between every practice all day, even at night now,” Jones said Monday on The MMA Hour (via Shaun Al-Shatti of MMAFighting.com). “I figured I’d take getting in trouble out of the police’s hands by simply not driving.”

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Jon Jones Reveals He Received Multiple Citations During Recent Traffic Stop

Former UFC champion Jon Jones spoke to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com on The MMA Hour on Monday and revealed he was pulled over by police several days ago, cited for drag racing and issued five separate tickets (via Jeremy Botter of FloSports).
Jones…

Former UFC champion Jon Jones spoke to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com on The MMA Hour on Monday and revealed he was pulled over by police several days ago, cited for drag racing and issued five separate tickets (via Jeremy Botter of FloSports).

Jones told Helwani that none of the tickets were for speeding (via Geoff Grammer of the Albuquerque Journal).

The Albuquerque Police Department confirmed Jones’ comments, per Brett Okamoto of ESPN, and said that Jones was driving a white Corvette when he was cited last Thursday.

“I’m going to fight it,” Jones, 28, said of the tickets to Helwani (via Eric Jackman of The MMA Hour).

Luke Thomas of MMAFighting.com also noted that Jones confirmed he “said things to the officer he now regrets” and wasn’t only cited for drag racing.

Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk believes Jones should be facing serious punishments for his latest infractions:

Jones became the UFC light heavyweight champion in 2011 after defeating Mauricio Rua at UFC 128 and defended his title eight times. But the organization stripped him of the title before his 2015 fight against Anthony Johnson and suspended him indefinitely in April 2014 after he was involved in a hit-and-run.

Jones pleaded guilty to the hit-and-run in September 2015, and the UFC ended his suspension in October 2015. Jones will face current light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 197 on April 23. It remains to be seen if the UFC will take any disciplinary action against Jones following this latest incident, however.

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Oscar De La Hoya Comments on Ronda Rousey’s Knockout Loss to Holly Holm

Former boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya weighed in on Ronda Rousey’s shocking loss to Holly Holm over the weekend on Good Day LA earlier on Monday (h/t Luis Sandoval of FightHype.com):

Well that’s what happens when you’ve faced the best. Look, it…

Former boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya weighed in on Ronda Rousey’s shocking loss to Holly Holm over the weekend on Good Day LA earlier on Monday (h/t Luis Sandoval of FightHype.com):

Well that’s what happens when you’ve faced the best. Look, it happened to Muhammad Ali; it happened to the very best. When you take chances, when you dare to be great, then you’re going to get beat at some point in your career. That’s what happens. I mean, she didn’t want to take the easy route and just fight anybody. Good for [Holly] Holm.

He added, “You know this, when fighters taste success, the hype around them, sometimes they forget about the training. They’re thinking more about their interviews and the whole Hollywood thing. It’s so distracting.”

De La Hoya’s remarks seem fairly measured and reasonable in comparison to the vitriol some sent Rousey’s way after her loss, from fellow MMA fighters to Lady Gaga and 50 Cent. (Warning: Link contains NSFW language.)

Even Donald Trump took a shot at Rousey:

Rousey came into her fight against Holm a perfect 12-0 and had beaten her previous three opponents in a combined one minute and four seconds. She was a huge favorite against Holm and was expected to quickly finish the fight, as has become her calling card, but Holm kept her distance, effectively using a strong jab before finishing off Rousey with a strong left high-kick.

It was the perfect game plan from Holm. But De La Hoya suspects Rousey will be ready for the inevitable rematch.

“I can guarantee you that if they have a rematch, I don’t know, who knows, it might be a whole different story, but I’ll tell you one thing; Ronda’s going to be focused and determined. That’s what makes it fun.”

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