(Always the center of controversy, Aldo caused a major stir up when he triumphantly waved a ”White Pride Worldwide” flag after his victory at UFC 142. / Photo via AP)
Although the figures have yet to be made public, early estimates indicate that UFC 163: Aldo vs. Korean Zombie pulled in terrible pay-per-view numbers, to put it nicely. It makes sense, given what the card was facing: A main event featuring one of the lower weight classes (one that was downgraded due to injury, no less), a main card lacking anything resembling star power or intriguing matchups, a bigger PPV at the end of the month, etc. Hell, even Dana White was too caught up in the media whirlwind that was the UFC World Tour to attend the event.
While there’s no denying Jose Aldo’s talents as a fighter, his ability to market himself and draw in big PPV numbers is somewhat less convincing. And with “Scarface” relegated to the sidelines for the rest of the year, what better time than now to start building up his heel persona? We all know that occasionally saying some crazy/accusatory shit in interviews boosts your pay-per-view sales, so who cares if it earns you some dirty looks in the locker rooms?
The reason we say all this is because in a recent interview with Tatame, the normally reserved featherweight kingpin not only came out in support of TRT and stated that he plans on using it in the future, but insinuated that beloved MMA icon Randy “The Natural” Couture was probably on steroids at one point or another during his career.
I don’t see the problem with using TRT. Everybody uses [steroids], from the champion to the newcomer. I believe we [from Nova Uniao] are the only ones that don’t do that, because Andre (Pederneiras) was always against steroids. I think it’s wrong to criticize someone who came forward and said they take TRT.
Right off the bat, Aldo is tap dancing on thin ice here. Claiming that everyone in MMA from the champion to the newcomer uses steroids, then immediately declaring that your camp is the only one that doesn’t is not only hypocritical, it’s downright suspicious. Whether Aldo realized it or not, making this kind of statement is sure to draw unwanted attention to Nova Uniao that could come back to bite them in the ass down the line. Because obviously everyone is going to assume that the guys doing steroids are the ones pointing their fingers at everyone else when completely unprompted.
“I would just like to thank the Academy for this award while also reminding everyone that I am the only actress in Hollywood to have never whored out my body to a director for a part. Never ever. Helen Mirren, on the other hand…”(*yanked offstage by cane*)
Likely figuring that he had already pissed off a good percentage of the MMA community with his previous statement, Aldo then started naming names like he was a sexual predator being interrogated by detective Elliot Stabler:
Americans always used that. Randy Couture fought until he was 50, and you say he was clean? If the doctors prescribe you and you’re on the limits, OK, I see no problem. If I need that one day, I will use TRT too.
Woah woah woah, Jose. Let’s not bring nationalities into the equation, because we both know that Brazilians have been the forerunners in shady, deceptive MMA practices since the Vale Tudo days — just ask Mark Coleman. Secondly, Randy Couture is a saint! A saint who just happens to be banned from attending UFC events forevermore. You don’t just go around throwing accusations all willy nilly without the slightest bit of evidence. That’s our job, dammit, and you’re making it look easier than it really is.