The dreaded news has been delivered. After days of speculation and debate as to whether or not he will compete, Jose Aldo will not be fighting at UFC 189. UFC president Dana White made the breaking announcement on the 8 PM ET edition of ESPN’s SportsCenter.
BREAKING: Jose Aldo pulls out of UFC 189. Conor McGregor will now fight Chad Mendes for interim title. pic.twitter.com/5LVM3AGZLV
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 1, 2015
It’s the devastating blow that fans thought would be avoided when the UFC announced last week that Aldo didn’t suffer a rib fracture and that the fight was still on. Ultimately, Aldo is still too hurt to defend his belt in less than two weeks, and he is once again forced to withdraw from an event.
Of course, this means that the new main event is McGregor versus Chad Mendes for the interim featherweight title. The winner will then face Aldo to unify the belts. When interviewed on SportsCenter, McGregor, who was present alongside White for this announcement, predicted a 1st round TKO of the two-time title challenger.
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This is a breaking story and Bloody Elbow will update this article with more quotes and information.
UPDATE: Video of the announcement with quips from Conor.
“If a man is scared for his life, we cannot force him to step inside & face me.” – Conor McGregor on Jose Aldo http://t.co/NOVzVulXVH
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 1, 2015
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