Conor McGregor had announced himself as the “king” even before he won his first UFC championship. A recent Instagram post from Ariel Helwani highlighted one such interview from 9 years ago when ‘The Notorious’ was preparing to fight Jose Aldo at UFC 189.
Helwani rightfully called Aldo the “current [featherweight] king” in the interview, since the Brazilian had held the UFC featherweight championship for a few years days back then. But McGregor objected to Helwani’s words and proclaimed himself as the real king.
Not many buildups to UFC title fights have been as chaotic as the events before the Aldo vs. McGregor fight. ‘The Notorious’ got under Aldo’s skin in multiple instances with his trash-talking.
But ‘Junior’ eventually pulled out of the UFC 189 fight, with Chad Mendez stepping in as his replacement.
The interview that Helwani highlighted happened before the confirmation of Aldo’s pullout, while there were only rumors flying about the same.
This is why it showcased McGregor firing verbal shots at his Brazilian rival, accusing him of being “afraid”. He countered Helwani’s “current king” remark for Aldo, saying,
“You’re looking at the current king, Ariel. You’re interviewing the current king”
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Well, McGregor did eventually prove himself as the real king when he finally met Aldo inside the octagon at UFC 194. His 13-second KO victory over ‘Junior’ is easily one of the most talked-about moments in the history of the UFC.
A lot of time has elapsed since then. Aldo is now retired from the sport as a fan favorite, while McGregor, despite his stardom continues to find the tag of a great champion elusive.
Aldo a better champion than McGregor
No one can deny McGregor’s insane popularity among the combat sports community. His brash attitude has earned him a lot of notoriety and helped Dana White earn millions from the sales of his fights.
But his brashness takes a toll on the amount of respect the fans have for him. He has gotten into bar brawls, had cases of assault against him, he threw a chair at a bus injuring someone, punched an old man and none of this even makes it to the top 5 of the worst things he’s been accused of.
On the contrary, Aldo declared his retirement from the promotion after his UFC 301 fight. Fans stood up, applauded and paid respect to ‘Junior’ for his undying contribution to the sport. Aldo fought every one, everywhere, he moved up an down weight divisions, won titles, defended them with aplomb.
The MMA community lost a true gem when he hung up his boots.
The same might not be true for the Irishman however. He’s lost to fighters he’s picked on and abused. And then he has continued to abuse them with impunity, while being ignored. Khabib Nurmagomedov tapped him out after what seemed like an eternity of vile and intolerant comments towards the former’s country and his people.
Dustin Porier defeated him twice, following which the Irishman made misogynistic remarks about his wife.
Besides, Aldo never kept the fans waiting for 3 years to witness his UFC comeback like McGregor. While Conor McGregor will continue being a superstar long after he hangs up his boots, it’s unlikely he will be spoken in the same vein as his Brazilian rival.
