Aldo explains his refusal to face McGregor: 'I'm not a cover-up'

Aldo (photo) suffered his first defeat in 10 years. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC

UFC president Dana White revealed that he called José Aldo for the Brazilian to replace his compatriot Rafael dos Anjos on March 5th, in the fight against Conor McGregor. The former featherweight champion did not accept it, and spoke out for the first time to explain his decision.

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Aldo, who has already said in the past that “I was already training for the rematch” and that “I would face McGregor anywhere, at any time”, told the website “GloboEsporte” that he was bothered by the fact that he was called up at short notice for the event.

“I'll give you a very quick answer: Comlurb is the one who fills in the holes, especially for those who live in Rio. If they wanted to fill the hole, just call and they would cover it”, said the Brazilian, referring to the body that, in fact, is responsible for cleaning the city.

Aldo still doesn't know what his next step will be within the UFC: “The next fight hasn't been decided yet. I'm waiting for Dana. We spent almost a month behind him, waiting for his response. He said to wait until March 5th, so after that, we’ll see what our next step is,” he commented.

With Aldo's refusal, the UFC chose Nate diaz to face McGregor on March 5, in the main fight of UFC 196.

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