UFC 205 goes down on November 12, and will arguably be one of the biggest events of all-time for a number of reasons. First and foremost, the pay-per-view extravaganza will mark the first UFC event in New York. After learning of the incredible star-studded line up in recent weeks, it’s the clear the promotion is
UFC 205 goes down on November 12, and will arguably be one of the biggest events of all-time for a number of reasons. First and foremost, the pay-per-view extravaganza will mark the first UFC event in New York. After learning of the incredible star-studded line up in recent weeks, it’s the clear the promotion is pulling out all the stops for the Big Apple debut. Who sits at the top of the UFC 205 pile? None other than lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez and featherweight boss Conor McGregor, and they’re fighting each other.
Causing a huge division in opinion, Alvarez’s first lightweight title defense against McGregor has also brought out the best and worst in fellow fighters. One very common opinion was that MMA was heading down the direction of boxing. Money rules the game, and certain sects of both fans and fighters find this very negative. Following the initial wave of reactions, UFC welterweight and lightweight Donald Cerrone has some interesting opinions.
Cowboy
Also fighting at UFC 205, Donald Cerrone was on stage at the infamous UFC 205 press conference last week. After sitting through another episode of the Conor McGregor show, ‘Cowboy’ revealed the Irish star had turned down two fights against him. Furthering these comments in a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, Cerrone says the rest of the fighters have a dislike for McGregor. So much is the tension that, according to Cerrone, McGregor has to be kept separate from everyone else backstage:
“They line us all up in a line, but they take Conor and they put him off in another room because he can’t be around the other fighters because we don’t play that (expletive). behind the scenes he’s like a scared little kid.”
“He’s not one of the fellas, he’s not a good dude. It is what it is. He does a good job promoting the sport, he does a good job of making money. So I can’t hate the guy for that, but just as a person I ain’t a fan.”
Not My Buddy, Guy
Although he sees McGregor as the class clown, Cerrone acknowledges the good he’s done for the sport:
“He brings a lot of people, so my hat’s off to him for that,” added Cerrone, “but just like hang with him like a fella, no, he’d never be my buddy.”
Will Conor McGregor and Donald Cerrone ever fight? Given their recent tendency of fighting in multiple weight classes and their constant rivalry, why the heck not?
After he knocked out Robbie Lawler at UFC 201 on July 30, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia to become the undisputed welterweight champion, Tyron Woodley made it clear that he was interested in ‘money fights’ with Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz rather than a clash with deserving No. 1-contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Woodley wasn’t granted
After he knocked out Robbie Lawler at UFC 201 on July 30, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia to become the undisputed welterweight champion, Tyron Woodley made it clear that he was interested in ‘money fights’ with Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz rather than a clash with deserving No. 1-contender Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Woodley wasn’t granted his wish, however, and he and Thompson will battle for 170-pound supremacy in the co-main event of November 12’s UFC 205 from Madison Square Garden in New York.
The two came face to face last week at the UFC 205 press conference, and surprisingly, Woodley received a harsh welcome from the fans. Not only did there appear to be some tension between “The Chosen One” and the fans, but many expected there to be tension between the two combatants as well, as Woodley recently said that he didn’t respect Thompson.
“Wonderboy” feels as if this was simply a ‘scare tactic’, however, as he admitted that things were ‘cool’ between the two at the press conference:
“Yeah, everything was cool during last week, during the media. We were talking to each other, shaking hands. Like I said, it might have been like a scare tactic or something he was trying to do to get in my head,” Thompson told Submission Radio. “And obviously I let him know real quick it’s not gonna work.”
Continuing on, “Wonderboy”, who doesn’t appear to be bothered by Woodley’s actions, said that the fans may have gotten into the head of the titleholder:
“And looking in his eyes, I don’t know if there was a little disappointment there that I saw. I figured that he might’ve thought that the fans maybe would’ve had his back. He was a little surprised that they were booing him and I could tell that, and I think that’s in his head a little bit.”
Who do you see walking away with welterweight gold next month?
Tony Ferguson has his own career to worry about, as the red-hot lightweight contender meets former UFC champion Rafael dos Anjos in November.
But, that doesn’t mean “El Cucuy” is ignoring all the talk centering around UFC 205 and the lightweight title fight between champion Eddie Alvarez and Conor McGregor.
Recently, Ferguson appeared on “Submission Radio” to give his thoughts on the encounter:
“Honestly, I hope they both knock each other out to be perfectly honest. It’d be kind of cool, we haven’t seen a double KO in a while. I just hope it’s a good fight. (There’s) a lot of shit talk, a lot of hype and stuff. I just hope it’s more than one round. Give the crowd a fight. Give them something that everybody wants to see, which is a good bloody war.”
As for his main event fight in Mexico City with dos Anjos, Ferguson sees himself taking RDA to “snap down city.”
“I’m gonna snap his ass down. I’m gonna put him in snap down city and I’m gonna get him so lost in that place that he has no idea and I’m gonna choke him out. That’s going to come after a barrage of strikes. I’m gonna hit that nose and make his eyes water and make him shoot – It happens with everybody – and once he does, I’m gonna cut him up with my elbows and I’m gonna stuff some knees in there. If he tries to take me down, I’m gonna put him in 10th Planet territory and it’s over for RDA.”
Tony Ferguson has his own career to worry about, as the red-hot lightweight contender meets former UFC champion Rafael dos Anjos in November.
But, that doesn’t mean “El Cucuy” is ignoring all the talk centering around UFC 205 and the lightweight title fight between champion Eddie Alvarez and Conor McGregor.
Recently, Ferguson appeared on “Submission Radio” to give his thoughts on the encounter:
“Honestly, I hope they both knock each other out to be perfectly honest. It’d be kind of cool, we haven’t seen a double KO in a while. I just hope it’s a good fight. (There’s) a lot of shit talk, a lot of hype and stuff. I just hope it’s more than one round. Give the crowd a fight. Give them something that everybody wants to see, which is a good bloody war.”
As for his main event fight in Mexico City with dos Anjos, Ferguson sees himself taking RDA to “snap down city.”
“I’m gonna snap his ass down. I’m gonna put him in snap down city and I’m gonna get him so lost in that place that he has no idea and I’m gonna choke him out. That’s going to come after a barrage of strikes. I’m gonna hit that nose and make his eyes water and make him shoot – It happens with everybody – and once he does, I’m gonna cut him up with my elbows and I’m gonna stuff some knees in there. If he tries to take me down, I’m gonna put him in 10th Planet territory and it’s over for RDA.”
Former WEC and UFC undisputed featherweight champion Jose Aldo is done fighting. After a career starting in Macapá, Brazil in 2004, the first ever 145-pound champion in the UFC has decided to call it quits. Keeping in tradition of paying tribute to the legends of the sport as their fighting stint comes to a close, we’ll
Former WEC and UFC undisputed featherweight champion Jose Aldo is done fighting. After a career starting in Macapá, Brazil in 2004, the first ever 145-pound champion in the UFC has decided to call it quits. Keeping in tradition of paying tribute to the legends of the sport as their fighting stint comes to a close, we’ll take a look at Jose Aldo’s best MMA moments, and everything in between as we say goodnight to the Brazilian ‘Scarface.’
Humble Beginnings
Born in Manaus, Brazil in September 1986, José Aldo da Silva Oliveira Junior had childhood dreams of becoming a professional soccer player. If it weren’t for his rough surroundings, that may well have come to fruition. ‘Scarface’ gained his nickname after his sister dropped him on a barbecue when he was an infant, a moniker that would later become synonymous with one of the most dominant fighters in mixed martial arts. Tired of getting beaten in the streets, Aldo began training in Capoeira.
Gaining the attention of a local Brazilian Jiu Jitsu trainer, Aldo was invited to try his hand at the grappling art. After just one class ‘Scarface’ was hooked, and transitioned to training BJJ. Once he reached the age of 17, Aldo left Manaus for Rio de Janeirao, with just the clothes on his back and the urge to succeed as a mixed martial artist. His first ever pro MMA fight was against Mario Bigola in 2004. Aldo won by knockout in just 18 seconds.
Bright Future
Compiling a record of 10-1, Aldo’s next pivotal moment would come in his WEC debut. Facing Alexandre Nogueira, ‘Scarface’ announced his arrival on US shores with a second round TKO. His next fight was against future TUF winner Jonathan Brookins, and it was another TKO win for the Brazilian. Scoring two more stoppage wins in 2009, Aldo set himself up for his biggest fight yet, a featherweight title eliminator against Cub Swanson.
At that time Swanson was 13-2 with one un-avenged loss. At WEC 41 ‘Scarface’ would face the Californian on his home turf, the fight would last just eight seconds. In one of the most replayed highlights of his career, Jose Aldo decimated Swanson with a beautiful flying knee. Swanson’s face wore the strike in the form of a harrowing cut across his eyebrow.
This Kid is Fearless
Obviously there was no question as to who was next for the title shot. Following his KO win over Cub Swanson, Jose Aldo faced Mike Brown for the WEC featherweight strap. ‘Scarface’ took out Brown in the second round by way of TKO, and was crowned the champion. Up next was Urijah Faber, and although he didn’t get the finish, Aldo made mincemeat of ‘The California Kid’ using his trademark leg kicks.
Immediately after a crushing KO win against Manny Gamburyan, Aldo was promoted to UFC featherweight champion when they merged the WEC. Decision wins over Mark Hominick and Kenny Florian brought Aldo’s career record to 20-1, and he had finally gained the reputation of the greatest featherweight on the planet. At UFC 142, Aldo faced Chad Mendes in the first of two fights with ‘Money.’
Mendes 1 to Mendes 2
In front of a rowdy crowd in Rio, hometown favorite Jose Aldo knocked out Chad Mendes in the last second of round one. Aldo jumped the octagon fence and was embraced by his countrymen in an iconic moment. Numerous injuries kept ‘Scarface’ from the fight game for over a year, but he came back with a fight of the night decision win over Frankie Edgar at UFC 156. Stopping ‘Korean Zombie’ at UFC 163 and winning a one-sided decision against Ricardo Lamas had Aldo arguably at the top of the pound-for-pound list.
Although he was yet to be defeated in his WEC/UFC career, questions about Aldo’s motivation and form were raised. The gruesome war with Chan Sung Jung led to a litany of injuries and illness for ‘Scarface,’ and many believed he was losing the killer instinct. Returning to face Chad Mendes for a second time at UFC 179, again in Rio, Aldo blew off the cobwebs in a thrilling five rounder with his old rival. It seemed ‘Money’ had awoken the beast with his pre-fight trash talk.
McGregor and Beyond
After winning his enthralling second encounter with Mendes by decision, Aldo was eventually paired with a big game talking Irishman by the name of Conor McGregor. After more than a year of waiting, including an eventful world tour opposite ‘The Notorious,’ Aldo climbed in to the octagon at UFC 194. The rivalry with McGregor was much more than just the fight itself, it became a battle of two contrasting futures for the sport as a whole. The Reebok deal, fighter pay and respect would all factor in to this historic showdown.
UFC president Dana White and Jose Aldo were not seeing eye to eye. The Brazilian felt disrespected by the promotion, as talks of stripping ‘Scarface’ of his title emerged following his withdrawal from UFC 189. ‘Thrown under the bus’ was how Aldo said he felt. After blasting the UFC-Reebok deal too, the bout with McGregor at UFC 194 almost seemed like Jose vs. Conor, the UFC and Reebok. The rich backstory, intense rivalry with McGregor and the underlying script of money vs. rankings would all unfold on December 12, 2015. For all the time and strenuous promotion put in to the fight, just 13 seconds later the history books had a new name smashed in to them.
McGregor to Present Day
After the brutal 13-second KO loss to Conor McGregor, Jose Aldo sat out for eight months. Many felt the Brazilian should have received an immediate rematch given his former dominance, but other weight classes and rivalries beckoned for the ever growing star from Ireland. Many appeals and irate rants later, Aldo would find himself in a rematch, but against Frankie Edgar at UFC 200. Although toppled by McGregor in such devastating fashion, ‘Scarface’ was not done.
Winning a decisive unanimous decision against ‘The Answer,’ Aldo felt the warm embrace of UFC gold once again around his waist. This time the interim belt, and a widely expected unification match with McGregor was the result of the Brazilian’s hard work. UFC 205 was announced to be headlined by McGregor against the lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, and this essentially proved to be the final straw for Aldo. Demanding his release from the UFC, ‘Scarface’ said he was disgusted by the dishonesty of Dana White.
Say Goodnight To The bad Guy
Sticking to his guns, Jose Aldo would later claim that not even a rematch with Conor McGregor could keep him in the UFC now. He claimed that money ruling the roost had torn away his love for the sport, and the foundations of respect and honesty were now missing from MMA.
When all is said and done, Jose Aldo’s influence on mixed martial arts is undeniable. So long, and thanks for the fights, former undisputed pound-for-pound king Jose Aldo (26-2, 14 KO, 2 Sub).
Check out this gangster highlight aptly named ‘Scarface’ by Dream Eskimo on Youtube:
Not too many people are happy about the recent booking of UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez and UFC 145-pound champ Conor McGregor headlining UFC 205 next month, and one such man who isn’t too hot about the idea is none other than Khabib Nurmagomedov. McGregor will attempt to make history when he takes on Alvarez,
Not too many people are happy about the recent booking of UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez and UFC 145-pound champ Conor McGregor headlining UFC 205 next month, and one such man who isn’t too hot about the idea is none other than Khabib Nurmagomedov.
McGregor will attempt to make history when he takes on Alvarez, as the current 145-pound title holder is eying to become the first man in UFC history to hold two titles in different weight classes simultaneously.
Alvarez is a fresh champion who is coming off of a first round knockout win over Rafael dos Anjos to secure the lightweight crown, and is hoping to derail the Irishman’s hype train on the biggest stage in mixed martial arts (MMA) history.
By doing this, however, he will be leaving No. 1-ranked Khabib Nurmagomedov waiting in the wings for his long awaited shot at the division’s championship, as he will instead be taking on Michael Johnson on the same card that ‘The Silent Assassin’ and ‘The Notorious One’ will be headlining.
During a recent appearance on The Luke Thomas Show, courtesy of FightSports.TV, Nurmagomedov discussed Alvarez’s reluctance to meet him in the Octagon for the title, revealing the champ declined to fight him on three different offers:
“UFC said ‘You’re going to fight August 27 in Canada against Eddie.’ I said yes, I take this fight. Eddie does not take this fight. After this UFC gives me UFC 205, Eddie say no. 206, Eddie say no.”
‘The Eagle’ went on to claim that if he doesn’t get his title opportunity after his match with Johnson, he’ll show them just how powerful he is in his home-country of Russia:
“After this fight I have to fight for the title,” he said. “UFC thinks Conor has power? Ireland only has like 6 million people. I am from Russia, 150 million people. If UFC don’t give me the title fight after this fight, I’m going to show how I have power in Russia and I know if I don’t fight for the title next fight, UFC will never ever go to Russia.”
Nurmagomedov went on to point out the fact that Alvarez called for an easy fight after his title win over ‘RDA’, stating that Alvarez knows he is a bad match-up for him:
“Eddie understands who is who,” Nurmagomedov said. “Eddie and all his coaches know ‘This [is a] very tough fight for me.’ He even said ‘I want an easy fight’. No, you’re champion. You fight #1 ranked, and #1 ranked is not easy. For me, it’s a crazy situation. But it’s ok, life is going and I’m going to keep going and I’m going to finish Michael Johnson at UFC 205 and after this I’m going to fight for the title.
“I’d rather take this fight because he signed with the UFC bullshit contract because he knows if he takes fight with me, his belt is going bye bye.”
In an even bolder statement the Russian went on to promise that if he isn’t granted his shot at the 155-pound throne with a potential win over ‘The Menace’, he won’t fight for the UFC again:
“If I don’t fight after this fight for the title, I never fight in the UFC, no more. I deserve this. If UFC doesn’t give me title after fight — I don’t care about unanimous decision, split decision, first round KO. If I don’t fight, I’m gonna show how I have power in Russia. Because UFC think Conor have power? I have power too. This is not all about pay per view. I have power too. I’m gonna show this power.”
“Very soon,” he said, “a young and very hungry Eagle is going to change these rules.”
Nurmagomedov will meet Johnson on the preliminary card of UFC 205 live on FS1, from the Madison Square Garden arena in New York City on November 12, 2016.
The chance of it actually happening was always next to nothing, but it seems like the prospect of a Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather bout just won’t seem to go away. It was close to being on the verge of gone, with Mayweather recently stating it was time to move on. However, McGregor brought the
The chance of it actually happening was always next to nothing, but it seems like the prospect of a Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather bout just won’t seem to go away.
It was close to being on the verge of gone, with Mayweather recently stating it was time to move on. However, McGregor brought the ridiculous potential super fight up yet again at last week’s UFC 205 press conference, adding that he might move on to face ‘Money’ after he was done with Eddie Alvarez at the UFC’s massive event from New York City.
But UFC President Dana White isn’t buying that. The outspoken exec met up with TMZ Sports (transcribed by Bloody Elbow) to give his opinion that the fight was never happening, and the two don’t actually want to throw down:
In White’s opinion, the fact that the two combatants ruled different sports was one of the main factors of it not happening. And as expected, White deemed it a ruse for the sake of money:
TMZ: “They’ve been talking a lot about this McGregor/Mayweather thing. Do you still think it’s going to happen?”
White: “No. I never thought it was going to happen.”
TMZ: “You never thought it was going to happen?”
White: “No. Two totally different sports!”
White then moved on to remind people McGregor was currently under contract with the UFC, something that means a McGregor vs. Mayweather bout would be difficult to make happen even if the two superstars wanted it to:
TMZ: “Because McGregor and Mayweather seem to want to make it happen, badly.”
White: “They seem to want the money, probably! But I don’t know how bad they actually want to make that a reality. Listen, Conor’s under contract with me. We can start with kicks, punches, and elbows.”
McGregor is set to break his own pay-per-view records when he meets Alvarez at arguably the biggest MMA event of all time on November 12. If he beats “The Underground King” to earn a second UFC title, it’s anyone’s guess as to where ‘The Notorious’ will go next.
Just don’t count on him fighting Mayweather anytime soon, at least according to White.
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‘The Eagle’ went on to claim that if he doesn’t get his title opportunity after his match with Johnson, he’ll show them just how powerful he is in his home-country of Russia:
Nurmagomedov will meet Johnson on the preliminary card of UFC 205 live on FS1, from the Madison Square Garden arena in New York City on November 12, 2016.