There is no such thing as consensus when discussing MMA history. It’s both fractured and fiercely contested, with fans separating into self-selected groups and arguing on message boards and Twitter. Dividing lines have been drawn and hyperbole reigns.
If you want to see how bad it can get, simply ask any group of hardcore fans who the best fighter in the sport’s history is, then stand back and watch the fireworks. You’ll see fighters like Jon Jones and Fedor Emelianenko lavishly praised and dismissed as utter frauds—often in the same conversation. This is not a fanbase big on nuance.
Jose Aldo cuts through the partisanship in many ways. Because, with Aldo, there’s not much to dispute. He is the greatest UFC featherweight champion of all time. Period. We can say that definitively because he happens to be the only champion the division has ever seen.
That’s about to change.
Tuesday on Sports Center, UFC President Dana White announced that Aldo was pulling out of his title defense at UFC 189 on July 11 in Las Vegas with a rib injury. Instead, top contenders Conor McGregor and Chad Mendes will fight for the interim title and the honor of becoming the second man to claim gold at 145 pounds.
“It’s (Aldo’s) decision. I don’t feel great about it,” White said. “We’ve spent a lot of money promoting this fight and a lot of people were excited. It’s definitely disappointing.”
The UFC clearly wants to be in the McGregor business, and for good reason. The Irish sensation has taken the sport by storm, injecting an energy into the featherweight class that the division has never seen. A brilliant self-promoter, he’s also managed the rare feat of backing up his tough talk in the cage. There’s a lot to be excited about.
But manufacturing an excuse to give McGregor a chance to wear a title belt isn’t the right answer for the promotion. White claimed Aldo had pulled out of five title fights in his career, but in truth, he’s defended his title with the same frequency as most other UFC champions. He just fought last October, and it seems likely he will be able to fight again before the end of the year.
Traditionally, the UFC has only resorted to interim titles when a champion was seriously injured. The champions in question ended up missing significant time, at least one year in every instance. There’s no indication that Aldo will be out for an extended period.
In this case, sources say McGregor demanded the fight with Mendes be for an interim belt. But I doubt he had to twist anyone’s arm too hard to get his way.
It’s not just a move the UFC has to make to appease their star—it’s one the promotion wants to make. McGregor is their guy. He often stays at UFC owner Lorenzo Fertitta’s personal suite and trains at a UFC gym in Las Vegas. They would like nothing more than to see the sport’s next big thing secure a championship at the expense of the greatest featherweight ever.
There’s also a whiff of the punitive hovering over the decision to crown a new kingpin at featherweight. When Aldo’s team initially announced his injury as broken ribs, the UFC took the strange measure of essentially releasing it’s own competing medical analysis, claiming the injury was just a bruise.
The pressure on Aldo to fight in the most important bout he’s had in years must have been enormous. When he could not ultimately physically comply, the promotion seemingly lashed out in the only way it could—by offering his rival a chance at the belt.
The UFC has, as White pointed out, spent freely to promote this fight. It’s been tabbed as the biggest card of the summer and expectations were high. Aldo’s injury, frankly, blows those careful plans sky high.
It makes sense to be upset. These are upsetting circumstances. But it doesn’t make sense to be upset at Aldo. That didn’t stop White or McGregor from laying it on thick during their ESPN appearance.
“If a man is scared for his life, we can not force him to step inside and fight me,” McGregor said on SportsCenter. “Doctors have cleared him to fight. It’s a bruise—but he still pulled out. Rightfully so, the belt should be taken from him and we will contest for the interim belt, or in my opinion, the real belt.”
Here’s the thing, though—no one buys that. Aldo is the only featherweight champion any of us have ever known. That status doesn’t just disappear because the UFC says so. To be the man, you have to beat the man. And, no matter how loud his mouth or his suits get, McGregor isn’t yet the man.
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