Jose Aldo’s Coach Says It’s McGregor Or Nothing

With UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor‘s business with Nate Diaz at welterweight coming to a conclusion for the time being, it is time for the Irish champ to come back down to his championship weight to defend his throne.

The man with the first claim to a shot at McGregor is interim 145-pound champion Jose Aldo, who soundly defeated former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar to clinch the UFC’s interim featherweight strap at UFC 200 this past July.

Aldo’s head-coach Andre Pederneiras recently joined The MMA Hour to discuss a unification bout between his protege and ‘The Notorious One’, claiming he prayed for McGregor to defeat Diaz this past Saturday (August 20, 2016):

“For sure, for sure, I prayed for him to win,” he said. “Now he either goes back to his division and make a match for Aldo…I don’t understand, because one more time he wanted to fight Nate, but not give Aldo an opportunity for another fight.

I cannot understand him. Now he says maybe he goes to 155. No, he need to go down and drop his weight down to 145 and give a match to Aldo. He deserves that.”

UFC President Dana White said that McGregor’s next bout will definitely be a title defense of the belt he won this past December, and Pederneiras has full confidence in White’s claim:

“First of all, I will always believe in Dana,” Pederneiras said. “If Dana says it, he needs to go. I don’t think he’s confident to fight Aldo again. He knows that one punch don’t say anything to anybody, if I am better or the other guy’s better.

I still have to talk with Sean Shelby,” he said. “I spoke to him a little after the Conor fight and he asked me to call him next week — I’ll probably call him and Dana next to see what happens in the future.”

When asked if a fight with McGregor would be the only fight Aldo would take, unless ‘The Pride of Ireland’ is forced to drop the title, Pederneiras was quick to respond:

“Yeah, yeah for sure,” he said.

You can watch Pederneiras’ full interview here: