UFC STAR URIJAH Faber has given his verdict on the Jose Aldo versus Conor McGregor fight, and Irish fans hoping ‘The Notorious’ can avoid defeat should pay attention.
Because when it comes to UFC world title bouts, nobody knows more about losing them than Faber, who has failed on three separate occasions when UFC bantamweight gold was at stake.
Faber was asked about this summer’s meeting of McGregor and UFC featherweight champion Aldo when he appeared on Stud Show Radio, and ‘The California Kid’ couldn’t resist having a dig at the Dubliner.
Faber insisted that McGregor has been shown up as a quitter in the past, citing his first professional defeat — to Artemij Sitenkov — which took place all of seven years ago, when the Irish featherweight’s professional career was three-months-old.
“He [McGregor] tapped to a 125-pounder [Sitenkov] for a kneebar,” said Faber. “He’ll give up, he’s proven that. He lost in the first minute two times to submissions. He didn’t go out, he didn’t let his knee pop, he was like… ah, I give up.”
A former WEC featherweight champion who tasted defeat to Jose Aldo in 2010, Faber did — slightly begrudgingly — pay McGregor some compliments, but the 35-year-old American expects his former opponent to emerge victorious on 11 July in Las Vegas.
Faber said: “He [McGregor] believes in himself, which is the most dangerous thing. That’s not an act, he really thinks he’s going to be the champ. Whenever you have two guys that really believe they’re going to be the champ, and they’re equally skilled, it’s going to be a tough fight.
“But I think Aldo is going to get him. I think he’s also pissed Aldo off. Aldo’s going to train like a mad man. They’re both gifted athletes but Aldo, in my opinion, is the more gifted.”
