Jose Aldo was in, then he was out, then he was in again, then it was pretty much 50-50. But now he's out, and this time it's final.
The UFC featherweight champion has officially withdrawn from his scheduled title defence against Conor McGregor at UFC 189 due to the rib injury he sustained during training in Rio De Janeiro last week, and will be replaced by the 17-2 Chad Mendes, who - despite losing twice to the Brazilian - bookies had opened as a favourite over McGregor should he be called upon as Aldo's replacement.
The official UFC statement read:
UFC 189 has a new main event, as featherweight champion Jose Aldo has withdrawn from his July 11 title defense against Conor McGregor due to an injured rib.
Chad Mendes, who had been on standby since news of Aldo's injury broke, will now face McGregor for the interim 145-pound crown at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC president Dana White finally ripped the plaster off Irish UFC fans while speaking to ESPN in the States at around 01:15 Irish time, perhaps fooling himself into thinking a good night's sleep might prevent the entire nation from bombarding him with tweets in the morning.
It's obviously galling to see one of the most eagerly anticipated fights in MMA history fall through at such short notice, but in McGregor vs Mendes, the UFC 189 main event is still one for the ages.
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
The UFC president seemed conspicuously disappointed considering the general excitement from the fans, along with the sums of money invested in promoting the original fight.
He told SportsCenter,
Aldo's rib is too painful and he will not be fighting.
It's (Aldo's) decision. I don't feel great about it. We've spent a lot of money promoting this fight and a lot of people were excited. It's definitely disappointing.
Let's face it, he's not wrong, but McGregor vs Mendes could arguably develop into an equally enthralling contest considering the replacement's capabilities on the ground.
To quote the man himself, this is a whole other ball game. Bring it on.
