At the end of the UFC 245 tournament in Las Vegas, one of the most important was the question of determining the future contender for the bantamweight title. One of the candidates was deservedly considered Peter Jan, who effectively knocked out member of the Hall of Fame promotion Yuriu Feiber, and the second - Jose Aldo. The former holder of the featherweight belt lost in a separate decision to Marlon Moraes, but still attracted the attention of both the current flagship of the division, Henry Sehudo, and the president of the organization, Dana White. At a press conference, the functionary said that it was the Brazilian with a high degree of probability that he would be able to argue for the honorary title.
It is noteworthy that the fights involving Ian and Aldo in the framework of UFC 245 were held one after another, which allowed both fans and match makers to make a comparison between their performances. And if Peter dominated for almost all 11 minutes, then Jose was not much superior to his opponent. Yes, he constantly pressed and looked pretty good in a new category for himself, but he was not better than Marlon. Most of his blows flew past, and those who reached the goal did not always seem accented.
In addition, the Brazilian advantage was noticeable only in the second five-minute period, while the first he lost with a high degree of probability, and the third was equal. With all of the above, Aldo’s failure no longer seems so controversial. In fact, everything was decided by the final round, during which he could not adequately realize the superiority in size.
Undoubtedly, Jose was surprised that he was able to fit into the limit of the lightest weight and did not yield to the opponent in terms of “physics”. A weightlifter is always difficult and leaves an imprint on the athlete’s performance, but he managed to avoid it. However, Aldo’s performance was not impressive. At featherweight, he repeatedly demonstrated how easily he can deal with opponents who are noticeably inferior to him in height and length of hands. It is enough to recall his first meeting with Chad Mendes or the battle with Frankie Edgar. But this time the battle turned out to be extremely competitive, which makes us think about the form of the 33-year-old Brazilian.
Of course, White’s sympathy could be influenced by the fact that Ian was opposed only by Faber, who recently returned to the octagon, and Aldo struggled with the first rating number. But the confident and colorful triumph of the Russian, if not completely makes up for this difference, then at least adds a couple of points to his piggy bank.
In view of the foregoing, it may seem that Sehudo’s desire to organize a duel with Aldo is due not to the high results of the latter, but only to a big name. Over the past two and a half years, the Brazilian has fought six fights, in four of which he failed. He was beaten twice by Max Holloway, after which he was able to get the better of the middle middleweight category in the person of Jeremy Stevens and Renato Moikano, but then lost to Aleksander Volkanovsky. Given the misfire in the battle with Moraes, in the passive Jose a series of two defeats appears, which is hardly a worthy indicator for the title seeker.
It is all the more remarkable that for Aldo, this battle became the debut in the lightweight category not only in the UFC, but also in his career. The first pancake obviously came out lumpy, which is why giving him the title fight will be extremely absurd. Even the victory did not give the Brazilian good reason to move more worthy candidates for the status of the applicant, and failure should completely put an end to these hopes.
Of course, earlier in the history of UFC there were cases when athletes got a chance to compete for the title or title of the first challenger without having a single fight in the category. Conor McGregor, Georges Saint-Pierre, Max Holloway, Daniel Cormier and all the same Sehudo received such honor. However, the Irishman approached the fight with Eddie Alvarez in the status of the featherweight champion, the only defeat of which took place in the welterweight division. The Canadian had a series of 12 victories in a row, and the rest owned the titles in their “native” weight categories.
Against this background, the decision to give Aldo a chance to fight with Sehudo looks at least not entirely objective. Especially considering the fact that there is a fighter in a bantamweight series with a series of six victories, ideal for grappling with a belt. In a year and a half, Jan managed not only to win three times as many fights as a possible contender for the title, but also to do it effectively. For a knockout in the battle with Faber, he was awarded the "Performance of the evening" award, and his battle with Gene Su Son was recognized as the most spectacular at the first UFC tournament in Moscow.
Unlike Aldo, who has been imprisoned for defense, Ian always goes ahead and does not mind taking part in the uncompromising cutting, which fans like so much. There is no doubt that with Sehudo he will perform in the same manner and give the audience at least a few unforgettable minutes.
Perhaps the American understands that a possible meeting with a Russian will be one of the most difficult for him in his career, so he wants to fight with a Brazilian. This will help him to postpone the duel with Ian as much as possible, and in an ideal situation to completely avoid it. Do not forget that Sehudo also owns a flyweight belt and is likely to continue to carry out defenses in turn. Considering the fact that in recent times Henry has performed more in public than in a cage, Peter's expectation may last a year.
It must be understood that the leadership of the UFC will not allow the Russian to sit around so much time, purposefully preparing himself for the title fight. So far, Jan does not have such a status, because of which he will have to remain active and continue to fight with top athletes. For a year, he can both cement the title of the first applicant and lose all chances to meet with Sehudo. Even one failure will throw him in the middle of the tens of the strongest and force him to spend some time restoring his reputation.
Ian’s situation was further complicated by Cody Garbrandt, who entered into confrontation with him during the tournament in Las Vegas. The UFC loves vivid confrontations, so it will be happy to organize a meeting for them in the future. True, for this, the ex-champion needs to reanimate his career and interrupt a series of three defeats in a row. He will have a chance for this in March, when he clashes with Rafael Assunsao.
Thus, the decision to provide the title fight Aldo may call into question the career of the new Russian star, which is so needed by the UFC. If Khabib Nurmagomedov keeps his word and soon hangs gloves on a nail, the promotion will need a new hero to attract an audience in the Russian market. Given the achievements and achievements, it is Peter who can be considered the main heir to Habib in the Absolute Fighting Championship.
Of course, one can recall Zabit Magomedsharipov and Alexander Volkov, but the first did not manage to demonstrate all of his best qualities in battles with equal rivals and shook the UFC's faith in itself, and the second only began to recover after an insulting defeat from Derrick Lewis. Against their background, Jan looks like the most worthy candidate for the champion and deserves to measure his strength with Sehudo as soon as possible.