UFC only allows Conor McGregor to pick his fights, says Brendan Schaub
Officially, the UFC doesn't allow its fighters to pick their fights. However, Brendan Schaub believes Conor McGregor to be an exception when it comes to having the ability to choose his opponent.
While appearing on a recent episode of his YouTube series, The Schaub Show, the former heavyweight contender discussed a variety of topics, including UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs. Fiziev.
At one point during the discussion, Schaub spoke of the recent Jon Jones vs. Francis Ngannou Twitter beef. Jon Jones expressed his willingness to fight former heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic instead of going against the current champ in his UFC return.
In reference to this, Shaub stated how the promotion is quite particular when it comes to matching up fighters. He stated that even though prominent fighters like Jon Jones might have some leverage due to their billing power, most do not have the option to pick their opponents:
It doesn't work that way, though. UFC doesn't work that way. I mean maybe if you're Jon Jones. Even then, it's dicey. They don't really let you pick your fights, you know. They might give you, like, alright you could, like especially with Conor [McGregor]... different animal... [The treatment of other fighters is a] far cry from Conor."
Adding further, he said:
"They might come to Conor and go, 'Alright dude, uh, we can do the Chandler thing or do you want on Diaz?' But either way, you know, 'This is what we're thinking in this time frame—which would you rather go with?'... That's Conor, nobody else. Even GSP [Georges St-Pierre], not really. GSP could tell him when he wants to fight but not who... He could probably put his input in but... very rarely you can pick your guys."
Check out this episode of The Schaub Show below:
Brendan Schaub gives his take on Israel Adesanya being betting favorite against Alex Pereira
Brendan Schaub is unimpressed that the bookmakers have Israel Adesanya as a slight -180 favourite in a potential clash with Alex Pereira.
Alex Pereira is only three fights into the promotion, but he is already being regarded as Adesanya's toughest opponent. This is primarily because the Brazilian is a former world champion kickboxer who previously defeated 'The Last Stylebender' in two kickboxing matches, one of which was an impressive knockout.
However, Brendan Schaub believes that if the two fought in the octagon, it would not be the same. He believes that the middleweight champion has enough MMA fighting experience against elite fighters to defeat his former opponent, whereas the Brazilian is new to the game.
Giving his take on the matter in a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Schaub had this to say:
"I think with 'Izzy's background, what he's done in the UFC at the highest level, I think he should be a minus 360 or something around there... It's insane, it's disrespectful... These bettors don't give a f**k about, you know, Izzy or Pereira. They just want your money..."
Check out the entire discussion with Brendan Schaub below: