Midnight Roundup! Conor McGregor on Jose Aldo's UFC return, Francis Ngannou's MMA plans, and more
Conor McGregor has weighed in on his former UFC rival's surprise unretirement. Elsewhere, PFL chairman Donn Davis disclosed Francis Ngannou's MMA plans.
Here is your day's daily quota of combat sports updates.
Conor McGregor on Jose Aldo's unretirement
There are few rivals that Conor McGregor speaks highly of. Jose Aldo is one of them.
In his recent appearance on The MMA Hour, McGregor told Ariel Helwani what he thought of the Brazilian's retirement.
He said:
"I was actually taken back that [Jose Aldo] did retire when he retired. He was in contention for the f***ing title, he was in title contention from where I was looking."
He also weighed in on Aldo's comeback scheduled for UFC 301.
"I’m happy to see Jose back and I wonder if it was a business play that didn’t play out for him. I wonder, was he trying to press for more and then walked away and they let him?"
Francis Ngannou's boxing losses changed his MMA plans
PFL founder and chairman Donn Davis says that had Francis Ngannou won against Anthony Joshua, he may not have returned to MMA in 2024.
Davis told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour:
"[Francis Ngannoy] would not have fought in MMA until the first quarter of 2025... It would have been December at the earliest or likely February of 2025. He was locked in. But he would have then gone ahead and fought Fury... It would have delayed."
Now that things have changed, Ngannou could return as early as July, but no later than September. He will face Renan Ferreira, winner of the PFL vs. Bellator heavyweight clash against Ryan Bader. The undercard will feature Cris Cyborg and Cedric Doumbe as well.
Ex-UFC star comments on $335 million lawsuit settlement
TKO Holdings, UFC's parent company, settled the long-running class action antitrust lawsuits against UFC in March for $335 million. It was filed by fighters seeking better pay.
In the lawsuit, plaintiffs accused UFC of illegal monopsony in combat sports. They alleged the promotion was using anti-competitive practices to keep fighter wages low and bottleneck the growth of rival promotions.
MMA fans slammed the decision almost unanimously, stating that the promotion was getting away easily.
Former fighter Brendan Schaub believes it is a "massive victory for the UFC" but "awful for the fighters" and every other MMA organization. However, he does not blame Dana White for the situation.
"UFC settled the antitrust lawsuit. HUGE win for the UFC. Bad for every other organization for so many reasons. UFC remains the king. Until the fighters unionize like MLB, NBA, and NFL nothing will ever change. You can be mad at @danawhite all you want but it’s not his fault or job."
Read his full reaction in the tweet below:
Michael 'Venom' Page wants to fight Ian Garry
Michael 'Venom' Page wants to fight Ian Garry, who is currently embroiled in a rivalry with Colby Covington.
Speaking with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, the No. 13-ranked welterweight explained why he would want that fight. He said that Garry said in an interview that Page had no chance of winning against Kevin Holland on debut.
However, Page is not angry about it. He simply wants the fight based on their respective rankings.
He said:
"Everyone is entitled to their opinion. There's no need to be angry about it, but now, I've gotten past and maybe you could stop me... I think that's a good fight and I think he's ranked seventh. Seven is my lucky number."
Helen Yee takes up Sean Strickland's challenge
In a recent interview, Sean Strickland challenged Helen Yee to a swimming competition. The MMA journalist is a two-time state champion winner who resumed actively competing in the sport a year ago after a 16-year hiatus.
Strickland believes he can beat her easily, but Yee disagrees.
She wrote on X:
"Time for swim practice to train for Sean Strickland’s challenge. He’s so confident he’ll beat me since he’s a man. Should I give him a 5-second head start in a 50? Are you ready to race this week or next week @SStricklandMMA? Don’t back out, I’m ready.."