Tag: UFC 212

Quote: Dana Told Aldo ‘Conor Does Not Want To Fight You’

The last 18 months have been quite a whirlwind for UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. After losing his title in absolutely brutal fashion to Conor McGregor at UFC 194 in Dec. 2015, Aldo made it clear that he wanted an immediate rematch. After realizing that he wouldn’t be granted that wish, Aldo’s relationship with the […]

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The last 18 months have been quite a whirlwind for UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo.

After losing his title in absolutely brutal fashion to Conor McGregor at UFC 194 in Dec. 2015, Aldo made it clear that he wanted an immediate rematch. After realizing that he wouldn’t be granted that wish, Aldo’s relationship with the UFC became rocky. He would then, however, agree to take on Frankie Edgar at UFC 200 last July, dominating “The Answer” to become the interim 145-pound titleholder.

Mandatory Credit: Joshua Dahl-USA TODAY Sports

After the win over Edgar, Aldo once again expressed interest in a rematch with the Irishman, but Aldo’s longtime head coach Andre Pederneiras told ESPN.com that McGregor ‘wouldn’t accept the fight’, which led the Brazilian to explore other options:

“It was just difficult because after his fight with Frankie, he wanted Conor,” Pederneiras said. “But Conor wouldn’t accept the fight, and after that, Aldo started to think about retirement. We flew to Vegas to meet with Dana, and Dana said, ‘I can give you some freedom to box, and if you want to retire, OK, but your UFC contract will continue.’ Aldo started to think again, if he wasn’t given full freedom to box, still under contract, waiting for a chance to fight Conor, maybe he would try to fight at 155 pounds. That’s when we tried to fight [lightweight] Khabib Nurmagomedov, but his dad did not want him to accept. And then Holloway accepted to fight us after he beat Anthony Pettis in December, but said he needed to take his son to Disneyland and needed to do a movie, so now, finally, he has the time to fight.”

Continuing on, Pederneiras admitted that Team Aldo has a plan to secure a rematch with “Notorious” one, although the head coach also revealed that UFC President Dana White has told Aldo that McGregor does not want to fight him:

“Always. Always. We want a fight with Conor McGregor,” he said. But it’s hard to get. We know that. We know he doesn’t ever want to fight Aldo again. Maybe in boxing. Maybe he’d accept a boxing match. When we were meeting with Dana, he told us, ‘Conor does not want to fight you. I tried everything to put him in to a fight with you. I can’t put a gun to his head.’ That’s the word, from Dana to us. Dana told that to Aldo, directly.”

While a rematch with the outspoken Irishman may be a major goal of his, Aldo has a tough test sitting in front of him, as he’s currently set to defend his title against current interim champion Max Holloway, who’s riding an incredible 10 fight win streak, in the main event of UFC 212 this Saturday (June 3, 2017) in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

 

Pederneiras confirmed that Aldo is focused solely on Holloway:

“That’s the best thing about Aldo. When he signs a contract, he forgets about everything and concentrates on his next fight. He doesn’t want to lose any fight, you understand? Right now, he does not think about fighting Conor or boxing,” he added.

What do you make of Pederneiras’ comments?

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Max Holloway on Jose Aldo: ‘At The End of The Day, I Respect Him’

Max Holloway and Jose Aldo may have been trading verbal barbs, but that hasn’t caused “Blessed” to lose respect for his UFC 212 opponent. This Saturday night (June 3), interim featherweight champion Holloway will battle 145-pound title holder Aldo in a unification bout. The action takes place inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. […]

Max Holloway and Jose Aldo may have been trading verbal barbs, but that hasn’t caused “Blessed” to lose respect for his UFC 212 opponent. This Saturday night (June 3), interim featherweight champion Holloway will battle 145-pound title holder Aldo in a unification bout. The action takes place inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. […]

Marlon Moraes Admits he Was a Bit Nervous During UFC Contract Negotiations

Former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes is glad to be on the roster of the world leader in mixed martial arts (MMA). Moraes will make his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut this Saturday night (June 3) inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for UFC 212. Moraes will do battle […]

Former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes is glad to be on the roster of the world leader in mixed martial arts (MMA). Moraes will make his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut this Saturday night (June 3) inside the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for UFC 212. Moraes will do battle […]

Max Holloway Not Revealing Secrets Before UFC 212 Championship Match

Interim UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway has watched past Jose Aldo fights. That means seeing the devastation that Aldo can do to his opponents in terms of vicious leg kicks. The two meet Saturday night at UFC 212 from Brazil. “It’s called pay-per-view. A magician never reveals his secrets,” he said during an interview on […]

Interim UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway has watched past Jose Aldo fights. That means seeing the devastation that Aldo can do to his opponents in terms of vicious leg kicks. The two meet Saturday night at UFC 212 from Brazil. “It’s called pay-per-view. A magician never reveals his secrets,” he said during an interview on […]

Vitor Belfort Having Second Thoughts on Retirement Already

Vitor Belfort doesn’t sound like a fighter ready to retire. Belfort, who meets Nate Marquardt this Saturday night at UFC 212, has said before that this bout marks the final one on his current contract with the promotion. But the former champion sounds like he wants to fight on, regardless of the outcome. And he […]

Vitor Belfort doesn’t sound like a fighter ready to retire. Belfort, who meets Nate Marquardt this Saturday night at UFC 212, has said before that this bout marks the final one on his current contract with the promotion. But the former champion sounds like he wants to fight on, regardless of the outcome. And he […]

Vitor Belfort Leaves Door Open to More Fights In The UFC

Much of the pre-fight talk for UFC 212 has been tied to the idea that Saturday’s card will mark the last time Vitor Belfort throws hands in the Octagon. But, in a recent interview “The Phenom” did, Belfort sounded pretty interested in returning to the UFC after all… If you’re somewhat surprised and or confused right […]

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Much of the pre-fight talk for UFC 212 has been tied to the idea that Saturday’s card will mark the last time Vitor Belfort throws hands in the Octagon. But, in a recent interview “The Phenom” did, Belfort sounded pretty interested in returning to the UFC after all…

If you’re somewhat surprised and or confused right now, don’t worry. You should be.

After Belfort was bombed out by Kelvin Gastelum in March, he talked about closing the door on his fighting career, after the final fight of his current UFC deal went down. Then, Belfort revealed he wants to continue competing after UFC 212, but outside the promotion. In addition, his manager even reported that Belfort was eyeing potential bouts with Bellator’s Chael Sonnnen or Wanderlei Silva.

So what’s the scoop now? Well, Belfort spoke with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto this week, and “The Phenom” reported he’s enjoyed training at Tristar in Montreal immensely. So much so, Belfort had this to say, when he was asked if his scrap against Nate Marquardt this weekend, will indeed be his last in the Octagon:

“No, I don’t feel that way,” Belfort said. “I’ll be OK if this is my last fight, but it feels more like a new beginning.”

The 40 year-old also added this:

“I feel this can be the beginning of more fights in the UFC.”

So, this is pretty interesting news, considering we’ve gone from ‘Belfort’s retiring’, ‘to okay, he’s just leaving the UFC’, to the possibility of him inking a new deal (although, MMA Fighting is reporting that Belfort in fact has one more bout on his UFC deal – Belfort has said, however, that his contract is ending).

Of course, if Belfort gets taken out by Marquardt, chances are we won’t see the Brazilian star in the Octagon again.

UFC 212 will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the HSBC Arena.

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