Aldo (right) couldn't resist Holloway (left) (Photo: Inovafoto)
The lack of low kicks during the duel with Max Holloway at UFC 212 was one of the biggest criticisms from fans and the press José Aldo, who lost the featherweight title to the Hawaiian after being knocked out in the third round. However, Dedé Pederneiras, the former champion's coach, revealed that the Brazilian suffered a strain in one of his legs and therefore avoided kicking Holloway.
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Despite talking about his pupil's injury, Dedé highlighted that this does not take away the merits of the new belt owner, who is undefeated in 10 fights and, in addition to Aldo, has beaten names like Anthony Pettis, Ricardo Lamas and Cub swanson.
“Aldo came to the fight well, he did all the preparation. He had his injuries, he had a leg injury, he couldn't train that. I don't take credit for the victory Max Holloway. It's kind of funny, every round the audience ordered him to kick, but only us in the corner knew, we were avoiding the kick so as not to strain his muscle. He felt good in the first rounds and continued to take it until he tried to take it down, then the punch came in (…) It was a stretch, where in some positions he felt a lot. We kept training on the back burner so that it wouldn't explode. He was able to train boxing, wrestling and the ground game, but kicking or defending the takedown was very painful,” declared Pederneiras, during a live broadcast on FOX Sports' Facebook, also commenting that he hopes Aldo will receive a rematch soon, after winning another opponent, and made a point of praising his pupil, who held the featherweight belt for seven years, between WEC and UFC.
“We're definitely hoping for a rematch, but Aldo will have to have a fight before he can have that rematch (…) Athletes who have held the belt for many years… people don't know how difficult it is. Aldo was WEC champion in 2009, Holloway was still 19 years old. You hold a UFC title for so long, there are few in the world who can do that”, admitted Dedé.
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