Sorry Frankie, but giving Rafael dos Anjos his red panty night at UFC 197 makes complete sense.
Conor McGregor has been given his chance to fulfill his dream of becoming a dual champion on the biggest stage. If he achieves this feat, the Irish cash cow will transform into a prize bull who defecates bars of solid gold, and that can only benefit everyone involved.
Dos Anjos came out of his one-round annihilation of Cerrone in December relatively unscathed while McGregor didn’t take much damage during his 13-second dismantling of Aldo. Both fighters are fit and raring to fight, and UFC 197 presents itself as the ideal home for the bout.
With Ronda Rousey losing her belt and Jon Jones left in limbo for most of 2015, the Notorious seized the opportunity to emerge as the promotion’s biggest star. Obviously, it is in their best interest to put the poster boy on the landmark UFC 200 event and leaving the Dubliner a three-month turnaround to be ready after UFC 197 is doable, albeit risky.
One of the main criticisms of the fight announcement is that it leaves Frankie Edgar out in the cold, despite his recent performances solidifying his number one contendership status at 145 lb. However, the Answer’s somewhat acrimonious interview on the MMA Hour suggests he already knew the score at the point.
Edgar will have to wait for his second crack at the featherweight belt, but remaining patient will pay dividends come July should lady luck be on his side in terms of injuries. This may not seem like the case for the former lightweight champion considering how many times he’s been snubbed for title shots recently, but biding his time for the UFC’s gigantic event is the smart move.
Such is the extent of McGregor’s stardom that regardless of the result of the Dos Anjos fight, a duel against Edgar will more than likely be the main draw on what promises to be one of, it not, the promotion’s biggest show to date at UFC 200.
A loss to RDA shouldn’t have too much of a damaging effect on the drawing power of his first featherweight defence, considering its a different division. If anything, it will probably result in attracting more eyes as his detractors will inevitably tune in to see if the brash-mouthed Irishman will fall one more time.
Should McGregor actually claim the lightweight strap, it will only have a positive effect on the viewrship of UFC 200. Never before has a fighter held two belts simultaneously in the promotion’s history and should the Notorious become the first, each subsequent defence will garner more attention.
This can partly be attributed to the fact the higher you climb, the bigger the crowd will gather to anticipate your fall. This was proven when the 8 million strong YouTube viewers Felix Baumgartner’s Space Jump started plummeting upon the realisation that the astro-daredevil would land safely. It also rang true during the fallout from Holly Holm’s seismic head kick destroying the myth of Rousey’s invincibility.
The major concern from the UFC’s perspective is that McGregor would get hurt, which would rule him out of UFC 200.
Although competing undoubtedly increases the likelihood of a fighter sustaining injury, we’ve learned from Jose Aldo’s withdrawal from UFC 189 and Joseph Duffy pulling out of UFC Dublin that luck can be an elusive creature when it comes to staying fit.
McGregor or RDA could easily get hurt leading up to UFC 197 anyway. Edgar could be forced out of 200. Not even Mystic Mac himself can predict these things, despite what he may claim.
The counterargument to this is that the UFC should be doing all they can to ensure that McGregor is fighting fit for 200, but the uniqueness of the situation must also be taken into consideration.
Prior to the McGregor era, champions were expected to vacate their belt if they wanted to become the king of another weight class. This policy has seemingly changed judging by Dana White’s recent comments. An exception is being made for McGregor because they know the potential benefits having him as a dual champion will bring.
The big wigs have already listed the pros and cons, weighed up all the possible outcomes and have decided to roll the dice. All it takes is for one variable to send the whole plan crashing down, but if everything falls into place and it actually comes off, it will be one hell of a payoff.
*Piece first published on January 8.
