Last night, Nate Diaz took it upon himself (probably) to announce that he and Dustin Poirier would be main eventing UFC 230 on Nov. 3 with the inaugural 165 lb. UFC Title on the line.
Now, this would be super exciting stuff as the fight by itself is guaranteed fireworks, but the possibility that we’re getting a 165 lb weight division..holy shit…that’s cool. The problem is Dana White shut that shit down right away. Now, just because Uncle Dana said there was no truth to the statement doesn’t necessarily mean that there is no truth to the statement. White has a track record of saying fights were boo shit before announcing said fight about a week later. It’s all control with him.
He doesn’t want you announcing shit. He wants to announce it in front of the media with a possible staredown to get the people going. Especially an announcement involving a (possible) new weight class in a time where the dangers of weight cutting is very much a conversation fighters are having out in the open. Basically, a 165 lb division would fit between the Lightweight (155 lb) and Welterweight (170 lb) divisions, allowing fighters to not have to cut as much weight leading up to fight week. This would hopefully lead to healthier fighters as a whole plus less catchweight/cancelled fights
Along with the weight argument comes the “who else do you put in that main event?” argument.
With what is already booked for 2018, along with the injuries we have across all the divisions, there just isn’t much left to do with that main event spot. DC is banged up (and waiting for BROCK), Bobby Knuckles is probably looking at Kelvin Gastelum next year, Woodley is scheduled for surgery next month, Khabib/Conor is next weekend, Max Holloway/Brian Ortega is coming at the end of the year or early next year, TJ Dillashaw/Henry Cejudo may be a thing next year, Cyborg/Nunes in December, Joanna/Valentina in December and Thug Rose is out until sometime in 2019.
The only ace White has right now is Jon Jones, though it seems like he is looking at a 2019 return as well. Jones’ troubles have been well documented, so maybe it’s for the best that he eases back into the game. But, this just feels like a great spot for Jones/Gustafsson II. Again, I think it’s best for business to have Diaz/Poirier main event with a new title on the line for the winner to call out McGregor post-fight. Both men have history with him so the idea of either guy calling him out with the prize of a possible third belt on the line…shiiiiit that’s gonna sell like hot cakes.
But if you’re not setting that up, then the biggest fight available is the run-back of Bones/Gus. Their first encounter was MOTY and on my list of best fights I’ve ever seen. It was the first and only time Jones matched up with someone that had the same kind of length and reach when squaring up. The fight was sooooo close that some say the biggest difference maker in the decision was a gnarly spinning elbow that Jones connected with late. It’s a guaranteed barn burner when both men are at the top of their games, which begs the question: does White think Jones is ready for that?
It’s a fact that McGregor owns the UFC, but other than that psycho, the only other big time star from a branding argument is Jones. Even with all his baggage, the guy has a huge following and will sell pay per views. So, do you throw him in with a guy that’s been aching for a rematch since the judges’ cards were read after fight one over five years ago? Probably not, but I just don’t think it’s fair to the fans or to a guy like Poirier that has literally fought his entire life to be in a spot like this to just throw an interim title fight on top of the card just for the sake of it.
John Mosley is the independent wrestling and TV aficionado of the SoBros Network. He graduated from ETSU with a degree in Radio, TV and Film along with a minor in Film Studies. Since graduating he’s done pretty much nothing but watch, film, edit or commentate for local wrestling promotions and is the current color commentator for Resolute Wrestling. #Preds #Titans #DefendOrVacateConor – Follow on Twitter: @SoBroMose
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