Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
“Aldo’s been around forever, the guy’s a warrior, and to say Aldo doesn’t deserve anything is ridiculous.”
UFC president Dana White has come under fire for his controversial booking of Jose Aldo vs. Petr Yan at UFC 251.
Despite being on a two-fight losing streak and botching his bantamweight debut against Marlon Moraes, Aldo will get the chance to take on Yan for the vacant bantamweight title, leapfrogging the likes of Aljamain Sterling and other top 135-pound contenders.
White defended ‘Scarface’ at Friday’s UFC on ESPN 11 pre-fight press conference, claiming that the former UFC featherweight champion is more than deserving of a title shot at this late stage of his career.
“I’ve pretty much said a million times how I feel about that (fight with Moraes). A lot of people felt he won the fight. Jose Aldo’s one of the toughest (fighters). That’s the kid that Cejudo wanted. He was next in line for the title shot, how do we go back now and tell him Cejudo retired, so you don’t get the fight?” White said (h/t BJPenn.com).
“If people disagree with that fight, you know my point of view on that, don’t watch it. Don’t watch the fight if you don’t like it. Aldo’s been around forever, the guy’s a warrior, and to say Aldo doesn’t deserve anything is ridiculous.”
“It’s huge,” White said of Aldo winning the bantameight title. “I guess everybody would be wrong then, wouldn’t they, that he didn’t deserve the title shot. If he goes in (against Yan) and he gets absolutely dominated and its a one-sided fight and Aldo gets destroyed then they were right and we were wrong. You know, it happens.”
UFC 251, which will feature Yan vs. Aldo on the main card, is scheduled to take place on July 11 at the UFC Fight Island facility on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.