"He was emotional" - Justin Gaethje believes Jose Aldo lost to Conor McGregor because of the Irishman's mental warfare
Conor McGregor challenged Jose Aldo for the featherweight title in the main event at UFC 194. McGregor knocked 'Junior' out after just 13 seconds, marking the fastest knockout in a UFC title fight.
According to Justin Gaethje, Conor McGregor used mental warfare to gain an advantage over the Brazilian legend. Gaethje believes Aldo was not his natural self when he fought Conor McGregor.
'The Highlight' also believes that fighters should shed any emotion before stepping foot inside the octagon. Gaethje recently told Megan Olivi and Jim Norton in an episode of UFC Unfiltered:
"90 percent mental, 10 percent physical. I mean, Conor McGregor, you know some of his success was his ability to make people fight certain fights. You know, not necessarily Jose Aldo. Jose Aldo didn't go out there and fight Jose Aldo's fight. You know, he was emotional and if you are fighting emotionally you will not win. You know, you will not be your best. As much as it's, like, such an emotional experience, you really have to be void of any emotion in the fight...and then my number one rule is never let somebody affect my thoughts or emotions or you know, the way that I process my feelings."
Catch Justin Gaethje's appearance on UFC Unfiltered below:
Conor McGregor's mind games against Jose Aldo
Jose Aldo appeared mentally exhausted even before he went up against Conor McGregor. The Irishman was relentless in decimating Aldo throughout the build-up to their 2015 fight..
McGregor later revealed how he had meticulously planned to get under Aldo’s skin heading into the fight. Conor McGregor said at an open workout:
“Heavy rounds, heavy training. Having the whole of Brazil on his back. The pressure on him to beat this loud-mouth Irish kid. Heavy, heavy rounds. The body breaks. The world tour was just a combination of me looking at him dead in the eye and telling him what was gonna happen to him. I knew he does not speak English, so I spoke in his native tongue in Rio de Janeiro and told him he will die. And then that was it. I knew his body was tired. I knew his mind was drained. He’s on his way out of the game. All you gotta do is look. He’s looking for his exit." (h/t TalkSPORT)