UFC 250: Upset About Henry Cejudo vs. Jose Aldo? Dana White Has Some Words For You…

Recently the UFC confirmed what had been expected for a while: Jose Aldo is going to challenge bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo next. But, since the legendary featherweight is coming off a loss, the match-up has taken some heat online. If you’re one those folks who has been criticizing the booking, well, UFC President Dana White recently had some sharp words for ya.

White defends Cejudo – Aldo booking

Aldo made his much-discussed bantamweight at UFC 245 in December against perennial contender, Marlon Moraes. Due to concerns about how Aldo would perform at 135, on account of his weight cut, he surprised many people with his performance. In fact, it seemed like the consensus was that the former 145 king won the fight. Moraes, however, was awarded the unanimous decision win.

Well, Cejudo was one of the observers who scored it for Aldo, and he began pushing for a bout with the star. White seemed interested in the match-up at the time, and recently it was confirmed they’ll fight May 9th, at UFC 250.

But, since Aldo is officially coming off a loss (in fact two, as he was defeated by Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 237), some people have taken issue with the booking.  There are other bantamweights like Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan on winning streaks.

So, when White was recently approached by TMZ Sports and asked about the somewhat, controversial matchmaking, he said this (quote via MMA Fighting).

“I think [Jose Aldo] won,” White said. “I think the judges got it wrong and he won the fight. When you’ve done what Cejudo has done, he agrees.

“He texted me right after the fights and said Aldo won that fight. He wants to fight Aldo. He wants to fight the legend.”

Now, it should be noted that this isn’t the first time a fighter’s been tapped for a title shot, coming off a loss. Case in point, Yoel Romero is fighting Israel Adesanya this Saturday, and he’s lost two straight. Chael Sonnen moved up to 205 and faced Jon Jones back in 2013, after losing to Anderson Silva.

But, if you believe match-making should be done based on meritocracy and rankings, then none of that will comfort you.

White tells critics “don’t watch”

The UFC President, however, didn’t stop there. While talking about the fight’s critics, the outspoken executive said this:

“Then don’t watch it!” White said. “People are full of sh*t. People are full of sh*t, it’s going to be an incredible fight. Aldo absolutely deserves this. Cejudo wants it.

“The champ-champ, the guy who won belts in two divisions wants to fight Aldo. So what does that mean? And Cejudo isn’t a guy running around looking for easy fights.”

Even if you don’t agree with the fight’s booking, you have to admit, it has the makings of a pretty memorable fight. Aldo has outstanding wrestling defense, heavy hands, and he’ll have the size and reach advantage on Cejudo.