Conor McGregor hasn’t had much of a reason to celebrate these days, but that won’t stop him from blowing…
Conor McGregor hasn’t had much of a reason to celebrate these days, but that won’t stop him from blowing up some balloons every time 12/12 rolls around.
To this day, McGregor’s split-second destruction of ‘Junior’ is one of MMA’s most iconic moments and solidified ‘Mystic Mac’ as the biggest star in the sport’s history.
“Happy Conor McGregor day folks! The Twelfth of the Twelfth, 12/12, the day I unified UFC gold for my Ireland in record breaking fashion,” McGregor wrote on X. “12 second KO! Sláinte.”
McGregor won Knockout of the Year for his quick-fire finish of ‘Junior’ and to this day, it stands as the fastest finish in a UFC title fight.
Before falling to McGregor inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Aldo had won 18 straight fights in an unbeaten streak that spanned a decade.
The company that also represents McGregor, Paradigm Sports, celebrated the anniversary with a series of images on social media to commemorate the iconic moment in UFC history.
On this day seven years ago, José Aldo threw some trash talk towards his UFC 194 opponent, Conor McGregor. The lead-up to José Aldo vs. Conor McGregor’s UFC 194 bout is one of the most memorable in company history. The two went on an internationa…
On this day seven years ago, José Aldo threw some trash talk towards his UFC 194 opponent, Conor McGregor. The lead-up to José Aldo vs. Conor McGregor’s UFC 194 bout is one of the most memorable in company history. The two went on an international media tour, with McGregor dishing out arguably the best trash…
Jose Aldo reflected on his defeat to Conor McGregor over four years on from UFC 194. Aldo was defending his featherweight title against McGregor in December 2015 after what was a heated buildup between the pair to say the least. But despite being the favorite heading into the fight, the Brazilian would come undone in […]
Jose Aldo reflected on his defeat to Conor McGregor over four years on from UFC 194.
Aldo was defending his featherweight title against McGregor in December 2015 after what was a heated buildup between the pair to say the least. But despite being the favorite heading into the fight, the Brazilian would come undone in just 13 seconds after getting caught by McGregor.
It was Aldo’s first defeat in 10 years at the time and was a particularly devastating one for him to take given the trash talk he had to endure from the Irishman for the best part of a year leading up to it.
Looking back at it now in a recent chat with Cris Cyborg, Aldo spoke of his confidence at the time and how he didn’t see a single way for McGregor to beat him.
“We never expect to lose — and lose like that,” Aldo said (via MMA Fighting). “It’s a sport and it’s 50-50, of course, it could happen one day. As long as we’re fighting, losing is a possibility, but I was so confident in my head going into this fight. ‘No, I’m super well-prepared, I can’t see how this guy wins.’
“For everything that was said and everything that was going on, my team and I were positive that we would get there and defeat him. And that’s not what happened.”
Aldo went on to add that he started having doubts about himself after the setback and even reached out to Cyborg at the time to ask her how to get his chin strong following the knockout defeat.
He would never get his rematch with McGregor either.
After bouncing back with a unanimous decision win over Frankie Edgar to win the interim title, he was promoted to undisputed champion after McGregor was stripped of the title for inactivity.
“Right after that I said, ‘no, I’m the champion, that was only one fact that will never happen again in my life. That’s why I have to train twice as hard, see the mistakes I made and never make them again,’” Aldo added.
Aldo would eventually lose his title to Max Holloway and fall short in the rematch with the Hawaiian as well. In total, he has gone 3-4 since losing to McGregor.
However, he was on course to potentially becoming a two-weight champion in the UFC until his bantamweight title fight with Henry Cejudo was recentlycalled off.
What do you make of Aldo’s comments looking back on his defeat to McGregor?
Conor McGregor is harping over the time of his knockout victory over Jose Aldo from 2015. “The Notorious” took to Twitter recently and made the case that his knockout of “Scarface” took just 12 seconds – not the official 13 that is currently in the record books. Here’s what the recently-retired Irishman had to say […]
Conor McGregor is harping over the time of his knockout victory over Jose Aldo from 2015.
“The Notorious” took to Twitter recently and made the case that his knockout of “Scarface” took just 12 seconds – not the official 13 that is currently in the record books. Here’s what the recently-retired Irishman had to say on Twitter:
“It was 12! Look at this gif closely everyone and watch the clock. Referee Big John steps in at 4.48 seconds of the very first round. That’s 12 seconds! I demand it corrected before anymore talks commence. And yes that’s right, I smoked that boy in a gif. Now pass me my whiskey.”
McGregor knocked out Aldo in the main event of UFC 194 back in 2015. The victory was arguably the one that propelled him into a completely different tier of super stardom in the sporting world. “Mystic Mac” became the first man to defeat Aldo in over a decade. The win also earned McGregor the record for fastest finish in UFC title fight history.
He then went on to capture the lightweight championship, becoming the first-ever dual weight champion in promotion history. At the moment, McGregor claims he is retired from MMA after failing to come to terms on a new deal for his return to the Octagon. However, with a recent sexual assault allegation now looming, a return to the cage anytime soon seems unlikely.
Jose Aldo’s coach has reacted to Conor McGregor’s comments.
The MMA superstar was highly complimentary of Aldo for his emotional TKO of Jeremy Stephens at July 28’s UFC on FOX 31. McGregor commented that the ‘whole of Ireland was happy for Aldo on that night.’
The comments may have come as a surprise to many due to McGregor’s bitter rivalry with Aldo in 2015. Aldo’s longtime coach wasn’t among those who were surprised, however.
McGregor acts differently because he has to sell his fights according to Andre Pederneiras. Aldo’s longtime mentor and coach recently told Brazilian media via MMA Fighting that McGregor was actually a respectful man:
”I think Conor created this pejorative myth around him because of the things he says, but backstage he’s none of what he portrays himself to be to sell. Every time I met him he was super respectful, we shook hands, so it doesn’t surprise me that he had that reaction, especially now that he doesn’t have anything booked with Aldo.
“If he had something booked with Aldo he would say he was lucky, that he’s sh*t [laughs], only to provoke. He’s a guy that had done things I can’t see anyone else doing. He’s unique in history, can’t say anything.”
McGregor infamously knocked out Aldo in 13 seconds at their awaited featherweight title fight at UFC 194. Pederneiras wants that fight back due to its result. He said fans didn’t get to really see what it could have been:
”The first fight didn’t represent what the fight really could be, and that’s unfortunate for everyone who wanted to watch it. So I would choose Conor even though I have nothing against him. I know there’s a good person behind that artist and it doesn’t represent what he says. He says a bunch of crap to get attention and sell.”
McGregor is now headed for a massive lightweight title bout with current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at October 6’s UFC 229. The fight became the most awaited and hyped fight in MMA because of McGregor’s now-infamous melee in Brooklyn, New York. The former champion faced assault charges and agreed to a plea deal for them last month.
Pederneiras said the UFC’s megastar knew exactly what he was doing. McGregor was simply building the hype in his opinion:
”That’s him being the artist, in my opinion. He knows that he will have to fight Khabib, so since he has to do that, why not start the mess now and start promoting it?”
The former UFC middleweight champ has apparently since alleviated those concerns. Rockhold was apparently discussing his deal with the UFC yesterday and worked it out. The fight was finalized today according to MMA Weekly and MMA News’ Damon Martin. Weidman then confirmed he had signed up for the bout on social media this afternoon:
The fight is a rematch of Rockhold and Weidman’s first match-up at 2015’s UFC 194. Rockhold won the fight via fourth-round TKO to win the title from Weidman.
His victory ended Weidman’s over two-year run as 185-pound champion. Both men have seen better days in the time since as well.
Rockhold lost the title to Michael Bisping in his very next fight. The loss was arguably the most jaw-dropping title upset in UFC history. He returned with a victory over David Branch almost 15 months later. Rockhold then lost an interim title bid to Yoel Romero via brutal knockout this February.
Weidman has undergone a similar rollercoaster, losing three straight to Rockhold, Romero, and Gegard Mousasi. The onetime legend killer returned with an emotional submission win over title contender Kelvin Gastelum last July. But Weidman has been out of action ever since due to a series of concerning hand surgeries. The injuries, along with his lengthy history of surgeries, prompted the UFC to grant Gastelum the title fight over him.
He’ll look to force his name back into the title discussion by avenging his loss to Rockhold in his native New York this November.