UFC 212 is less than 24 hours away and the sixth episode of Embedded was released on the UFC’s YouTube channel. In the episode, strawweight opponents Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz preview their upcoming fights and then face off at media day; interim champion Max Holloway and featherweight champion Jose Aldo both reveal their plans […]
UFC 212 is less than 24 hours away and the sixth episode of Embedded was released on the UFC’s YouTube channel.
In the episode, strawweight opponents Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz preview their upcoming fights and then face off at media day; interim champion Max Holloway and featherweight champion Jose Aldo both reveal their plans for keeping the belt; and former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz joins the festivities. Holloway gets in a final training session with teammate and fellow fighter Yancy Medeiros, while Aldo relies on the trust he has in longtime coach Andre Pederneiras as he cuts weight. Gadelha and Kowalkiewicz’ weight cuts go smoothly, and all of the fighters hit their target numbers at Friday’s official weigh-in. Later in the day the competitors have one final faceoff in front of fans before fight night.
UFC 212 is less than 24 hours away and the sixth episode of Embedded was released on the UFC’s YouTube channel. In the episode, strawweight opponents Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz preview their upcoming fights and then face off at media day; interim champion Max Holloway and featherweight champion Jose Aldo both reveal their plans […]
UFC 212 is less than 24 hours away and the sixth episode of Embedded was released on the UFC’s YouTube channel.
In the episode, strawweight opponents Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz preview their upcoming fights and then face off at media day; interim champion Max Holloway and featherweight champion Jose Aldo both reveal their plans for keeping the belt; and former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz joins the festivities. Holloway gets in a final training session with teammate and fellow fighter Yancy Medeiros, while Aldo relies on the trust he has in longtime coach Andre Pederneiras as he cuts weight. Gadelha and Kowalkiewicz’ weight cuts go smoothly, and all of the fighters hit their target numbers at Friday’s official weigh-in. Later in the day the competitors have one final faceoff in front of fans before fight night.
Later this evening, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will put his title on the line against red hot interim titleholder Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 212 from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Aldo is considered by many to be the most dominant featherweight in the history of the sport, but he’ll face quite […]
Later this evening, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will put his title on the line against red hot interim titleholder Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 212 from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Aldo is considered by many to be the most dominant featherweight in the history of the sport, but he’ll face quite a tough test in the 25-year-old Holloway, as the surging Hawaiian has won an incredible 10 consecutive bouts. While the matchup of styles between the two will certainly be intriguing, Aldo feels as if the fight taking place in his native Brazil will serve as a key advantage for him against Holloway:
“The f–k he will feed off their energy. He’s going to f—king shit himself,” Aldo told Combate. “He never fought with that kind of pressure before, man. You can see in his eyes how nervous he gets when the crowd starts to put the pressure on him. It’s all baloney. He doesn’t want to let it show.
“I’ve fought millions of guys and I never felt the need to respond to the crowd or give them any gestures. When a person wants to show all that, they’re so nervous, you don’t even know how much. He’s afraid. He always fought in the USA, where there’s no booing or anything. It’s an important fight in a new place. He’s nervous, anxious.”
Aldo may have a point here, as the Brazilian crowd tends to rally around their home grown fighters, although “Blessed” has appeared to be nothing short of confident heading into the biggest fight of his career.
The champion last competed at UFC 200 last July in Las Vegas where he scored a one-sided decision victory over Frankie Edgar in their rematch. This win served as a pivotal bounce back for Aldo after he was famously knocked out by Conor McGregor in just 13 second at UFC 194 in Dec. 2015.
Holloway, on the other hand, is coming off of a dominant third round stoppage victory over former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis at UFC 206 last December.
Who do you expect to walk away with featherweight gold tonight?
Conor McGregor’s head coach, John Kavanagh, helped him prepare for bouts with both Max Holloway and Jose Aldo, and recently he made his prediction for Saturday’s contest. Aldo and Holloway will throw down in the headliner of UFC 212, which will go down in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. McGregor faced Holloway back in 2013, and worked […]
Conor McGregor’s head coach, John Kavanagh, helped him prepare for bouts with both Max Holloway and Jose Aldo, and recently he made his prediction for Saturday’s contest.
Aldo and Holloway will throw down in the headliner of UFC 212, which will go down in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. McGregor faced Holloway back in 2013, and worked his way to a decision win over the Hawaiian fighter. Then, in 2015, McGregor ended Aldo’s storied reign as the 145 champ (at the time), with a booming left straight just 13 seconds in.
Well, recently the SBG founder was asked to weigh-in on Saturday’s Aldo – Holloway scrap, while speaking toESPN. Here is some of what Kavanagh had to say:
I’ve been saying this since Conor [McGregor] fought Holloway [in 2013], that I saw him as the No. 1 featherweight. And how he has developed since then has only strengthened that in my head.
I think he will have a unanimous decision over Aldo. Aldo came up through a time when fighters were a lot more one-dimensional than they are now. Aldo’s style is almost perfect against smaller guys who are grappling-based. I don’t believe there is a smaller guy than Aldo in the world, who is grappling based, who could beat him. I’ve actually learned a hell of a lot from watching his fights and he’s pretty much perfect against that kind of opponent.
Kavanagh went on to argue that where Aldo has trouble, is against “guys who can strike”, particularly “rangy” fighters who won’t panic as a result of the champ’s vicious leg kicks.
So, when you consider Kavanagh is the head coach of one of the biggest stars in combat sports, and that he has a vast knowledge of the game, these are pretty interesting comments to consider. Others have also questioned whether Aldo will be able to deal with the reach, mobility and diverse attacks of Holloway.
But, it’s important to note that Aldo is one of the greatest fighters in history, and that he’s participated in a lot of high stakes fights. Holloway has a ton of momentum behind him, but, he doesn’t have the same experience as Aldo. Could that be a pivotal factor in Saturday’s scrap? Hard to say.
In addition, if Holloway can’t negate Aldo’s legkicks with forward pressure or checks, he could be in for a rough night, regardless of whether he panics or not.
It’s a fascinating fight on many levels. What say you? Who is going to win?
Conor McGregor’s head coach, John Kavanagh, helped him prepare for bouts with both Max Holloway and Jose Aldo, and recently he made his prediction for Saturday’s contest. Aldo and Holloway will throw down in the headliner of UFC 212, which will go down in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. McGregor faced Holloway back in 2013, and worked […]
Conor McGregor’s head coach, John Kavanagh, helped him prepare for bouts with both Max Holloway and Jose Aldo, and recently he made his prediction for Saturday’s contest.
Aldo and Holloway will throw down in the headliner of UFC 212, which will go down in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. McGregor faced Holloway back in 2013, and worked his way to a decision win over the Hawaiian fighter. Then, in 2015, McGregor ended Aldo’s storied reign as the 145 champ (at the time), with a booming left straight just 13 seconds in.
Well, recently the SBG founder was asked to weigh-in on Saturday’s Aldo – Holloway scrap, while speaking toESPN. Here is some of what Kavanagh had to say:
I’ve been saying this since Conor [McGregor] fought Holloway [in 2013], that I saw him as the No. 1 featherweight. And how he has developed since then has only strengthened that in my head.
I think he will have a unanimous decision over Aldo. Aldo came up through a time when fighters were a lot more one-dimensional than they are now. Aldo’s style is almost perfect against smaller guys who are grappling-based. I don’t believe there is a smaller guy than Aldo in the world, who is grappling based, who could beat him. I’ve actually learned a hell of a lot from watching his fights and he’s pretty much perfect against that kind of opponent.
Kavanagh went on to argue that where Aldo has trouble, is against “guys who can strike”, particularly “rangy” fighters who won’t panic as a result of the champ’s vicious leg kicks.
So, when you consider Kavanagh is the head coach of one of the biggest stars in combat sports, and that he has a vast knowledge of the game, these are pretty interesting comments to consider. Others have also questioned whether Aldo will be able to deal with the reach, mobility and diverse attacks of Holloway.
But, it’s important to note that Aldo is one of the greatest fighters in history, and that he’s participated in a lot of high stakes fights. Holloway has a ton of momentum behind him, but, he doesn’t have the same experience as Aldo. Could that be a pivotal factor in Saturday’s scrap? Hard to say.
In addition, if Holloway can’t negate Aldo’s legkicks with forward pressure or checks, he could be in for a rough night, regardless of whether he panics or not.
It’s a fascinating fight on many levels. What say you? Who is going to win?
Max Holloway could be 24 hours away from UFC featherweight greatness. “Blessed” is currently on an amazing 10 fight win streak over some of the biggest names at featherweight; including Cub Swanson, Charles Oliveira, Jeremy Stephens, Ricardo Lamas, and most recently former UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis. Now the interim 145-pound champ is set to […]
Max Holloway could be 24 hours away from UFC featherweight greatness.
“Blessed” is currently on an amazing 10 fight win streak over some of the biggest names at featherweight; including Cub Swanson, Charles Oliveira, Jeremy Stephens, Ricardo Lamas, and most recently former UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis. Now the interim 145-pound champ is set to test himself against the greatest featherweight of all time – Jose Aldo.
Aldo reigned undefeated in mixed martial arts (MMA) competition for over a decade before getting slept in 13 seconds by Conor McGregor at UFC 194 in December of 2015. He bounced right back with a lopsided unanimous decision win over Frankie Edgar at UFC 200 for the interim featherweight strap, but was promoted to undisputed champ after McGregor was forced to vacate his title.
Now “Scarface” will once again compete in a title unification bout, but this time against a young and hungry Hawaiian who is looking to solidify himself as the best 145-pound fighter in the world. Holloway once looked up to Aldo as an idol in his fighting career, but now he is ready to de-throne the Brazilian champ and take his place amongst the greats in the UFC (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“Idols become your rivals, and now I got one of them in front of me,” Holloway says. “And I can’t wait to make that walk and fight the guy. Things happen. Timing wasn’t right (before), and the timing is (right) now. I just look forward to it. I respect the guy. You need to respect the guy. Look, he’s the greatest to do it. Like I said before, since I was 17, I watched this guy sit atop our division. So, man, it’s time for a new era.”
As for Aldo’s 13 second loss to McGregor, Holloway doesn’t to hold that against the featherweight champ as much as everyone else does. At the end of the day “Blessed” still recognizes Aldo as one of the greatest the sport has ever seen, and won’t take him lightly:
“At the end of the day, he got caught,” Holloway says. “Thirteen seconds, whatever. It happens. This is a sport. He was one of the greatest. He had a long run. You kinda question some things, like maybe why he didn’t get an immediate rematch and blah, blah, blah, this and that. But, at the end of the day, he still fought Frankie (Edgar) for a dominating win and did it, won it. I hold nothing against him. I don’t care.
“I want the undisputed career. I want the best damn career. I want to be the best guy ever to do this. When it’s said and done, a long time from now, (I want) people still talking about my name as being the undisputed (best) fighter in the world. Not only of the featherweights, the GOAT of everything. I want to be like Demetrious Johnson taking pictures with 11 belts, or even like Joanna with her five belts. So, it’s cool. I want to be like these guys and just be dominant, just be dominant and leave no question that I was the best to ever do this.”
Some people may think Holloway is acting a little too cocky heading into his bout with Aldo, but “Blessed” urges fans not to mistake cockiness for confidence:
“I know I can,” Holloway says. “This is confidence, it’s not cockiness. Everybody keeps saying, ‘oh, this kid is cocky,’ this and that. No. No, just because you don’t believe in yourself, don’t be trying to bring your negative ass energy around me. You keep your negative self away from me, and I’m going to keep my positive self with my circle of boys and people, and that’s what we’re going to do. We stay confident and I know I’m the greatest. I tell myself I’m the greatest, and this is what you need to do.
“The stats, they speak for themselves. Go look at the featherweight stats and records and whatever. If my name ain’t first, it’s at least in the top-three or top-five of whatever. So it is what it is. I’m going out there to be dominant. This guy over here (Aldo) is saying that he chooses when he wants to be in wars and now he’s choosing to finish me early or something. Like, that’s f*cking amazing. I don’t read palms, I don’t read the stars. I’m not a mind-reader or fortune teller, I can’t see the future. But at the end of the day, I want the undisputed [accolades], and I know the things I can control.”
As for Aldo’s 13 second loss to McGregor, Holloway doesn’t to hold that against the featherweight champ as much as everyone else does. At the end of the day “Blessed” still recognizes Aldo as one of the greatest the sport has ever seen, and won’t take him lightly: