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Early this morning came the news MMA fans worldwide had been dreading. Jose Aldo is officially out of the UFC 189 main event. Months and months of build-up, unprecedented hype and all that trash talking all seems to have gone to waste. Since his injury was first reported a week ago, there had been much speculation surrounding the future of the title fight. Many believe that Aldo was being pressured into fighting by the UFC, who did not want to see their biggest fight in years be pushed back. Initially, Aldo said he would fight, injury or no injury but this morning, he officially pulled himself from the title bout.The UFC already had a Plan B in place. Chad Mendes will step in and face McGregor for an interim title with the winner eventually facing Jose Aldo for the undisputed featherweight championship. Yes, Chad Mendes is not Jose Aldo, and while Dana White and those at the UFC may be disappointed, in the long run, Mendes-McGregor does the company a whole lot of good. We list out 4 reasons why:
#1 Conor\'s Kryptonite
While Conor McGregor may have some of the most passionate fans in MMA right now, his doubters are just as passionate. Of the many things his critics accuse him of, talking his way to the top and never having fought a wrestler are at the top of the list. McGregor has faced only 1 top 5 fighter in the UFC, Dustin Poirier who is no longer in the featherweight division.
He didn’t face Mendes and he didn’t face Edgar. It seemed like the UFC had given McGregor a free shot at Aldo when he didn’t really earn it. Whether that’s true or not, Conor will definitely have to earn his shot at Jose Aldo now. The accusation that he talked his way to the top will no longer stick if he emerges with the interim title on July 11th. A fight with Mendes will also answer perhaps the strongest question in the case against Conor; is wrestling his Kryptonite.
Of all the fighters he has faced, Conor has never squared off against a specialist wrestler. Chad Mendes is one of the best wrestlers in MMA currently. Mendes himself believes that Conor will not match up well against his wrestling style. For all his elite level stand up, Conor has never been tested on the ground and never been matched up against a high quality wrestler. The last time Conor was in a scrap on the mat, he pulled his ACL.
The ground seems to be a place Conor does not want to venture into and his take-down defence will undoubtedly be tested when he faces Mendes. If Conor beats Mendes, he will be even hotter than before and with all the doubts surrounding him going up in smoke. His eventual fight with Jose Aldo will be even bigger and will make everyone a lot more money.
If Mendes, a man that Jose Aldo has beaten twice, beats Conor however, it will prove the doubters right. A Mendes win sets up another clash with Jose Aldo and after the excitement of the first two fights, nobody will complain. More importantly perhaps, if Mendes beats Conor it will propel Jose Aldo into the realms of the greatest of all time. For someone who he has beaten twice to go out there and beat his greatest rival will set Jose Aldo above any active MMA fighter today.
#2 The Beef
Chad Mendes does not like Conor McGregor. Let’s be honest, not many in the featherweight division like Conor McGregor. There is a mutual animosity that has been building from the day Conor entered the UFC. Never one to shy away from taking shots through the press, Conor has repeatedly bashed Mendes, calling him out and stated how easy it would be to beat him.
Mendes for his part has retaliated questioning Conor’s legitimacy as a number 1 contender and how he would fare against a wrestler. With this continuous back and forth it seems only logical that they get in there and settle their differences. Had Aldo been fit and had Conor beaten him, the shadow of Chad Mendes would still hover over his newly won belt.
That can be settled now, once and for all. This is the fight that most people expected Conor to get before a title shot against Aldo. If and when Conor does face Aldo, there can be no denying he got there on the merit of his performance and should he never reach the Brazilian, then he was never worthy to begin with.
#3 The eventual Aldo fight will be huge
The winner of the July 11th fight will become the interim champion but for all purposes they will merely be the number 1 contender for Aldo’s undisputed title. Aldo-McGregor was destined to break all kinds of records and be the biggest fight in UFC Featherweight history. However, when Aldo is ready and does fight again, it is conceivable that his title defence will be even bigger than it would have been at UFC 189.
If Conor wins, the much anticipated Aldo-McGregor fight will be even more hyped. Questions surrounding Conor will disappear and all of a sudden you have the long-time king against an advisory more worthy than he has been before. There is also the prospect of that fight being the first fight to take place in an open stadium.
If Mendes wins, then he will get the rematch many felt he deserved after his stellar performance against Jose Aldo at UFC 179 (a fight that won the 2014 fight of the year award). However, for Mendes to get his rematch by beating a man, who was the odds-on favourite to beat Jose Aldo, will make the title fight a lot more intriguing.
Either way, whoever comes out as the interim champion will be in line for a career defining fight against Jose Aldo the size of which has never been seen before.
#4 The Ultimate Fighter
The Ultimate FIghter (TUF) is the UFC’s highly popular reality show. It guarantees the winner a UFC contract and has produced some great fighters, including hall of famers Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar. The current season however, the 21st in the show's history, has been plagued with low ratings.
Dana White has said that he isn’t sure what the future holds for the show and will only make a decision on it once the current season is done. Here’s what could save it though, Team Aldo vs Team McGregor, Brazil vs Ireland. As much as the ultimate fighter is about the aspiring fighters, it is also about the pro coaches who face off in the octagon at the conclusion of the show.
With a fight hanging over their head’s the coaches often get heated with one another (see Rashad Evans and Rampage Jackson or GSP and Koscheck). This helps in the promotion of the eventual fight. The anticipation for GSP vs Koscheck was at an all time high following The Ultimate Fighter. Having McGregor and Aldo as coaches will not only save the show but also bring an unprecedented audience to the title fight, killing two birds with one stone
