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411 Fact or Fiction MMA: Should Cody Garbrandt Fight Jose Aldo Next?

January 11, 2017 | Posted by Lorenzo Vasquez

Welcome back to another edition of 411 Fact or Fiction MMA! I’m your host, Lorenzo Vasquez III, and it is a great pleasure to bring you another edition of the fact and fiction making rounds in the professional MMA biosphere. Thank you for your votes and comments last week. It is always appreciated and encouraged. Last week, we stood witness to a marquee matchup between Dan Plunkett and Evan Zivin. Both men were prepared and fought tooth and nail as they covered the possibility of Ronda Rousey fighting again, Cody Garbrandt earning the moniker Fighter of the Year, and the outlook for the UFC in 2017 in addition to more. Dan took an early lead but Evan tailed closely. Congratulations, Dan, for your 21-to-17 victory and thank you both for your efforts and contributions.

This week, we have a classic bout as Mark Radulich and Scott Kuczkowski collide over topics like Cody Garbrandt wanting a money fight with Jose Aldo, Amanda Nunes winning the women’s featherweight strap, the booking of Jacare Souza, and much more. This is shaping up to be a barn-burner so grab some grub and sit back because it’s time for another round of, 411 Fact or fiction MMA! Shall we…

TALE OF THE TAPE
RED CORNER
Mark “Headshrinker” Radulich
Supreme Overlord,
Radulich in Broadcasting Network
3-3-0

VS

BLUE CORNER
Scott “Kuch” Kuczkowski
Contributor, 411 MMA Zone
1-3-1

Cody Garbrandt vs. Jose Aldo is not a bad option for both fighters at this point.

Mark Radulich:FICTION I know I’m usually the guy who is all about the money-weight fight but this seems a bit too soon and too silly for me. Cody Garbrandt just won the Bantamweight title. Max Holloway just won an “interim” Featherweight belt. At a minimum Jose Aldo (barring yet another one of his ever-mounting injuries) needs to take on Holloway for a unified FW championship. I’m also a firm believer in that you don’t get money-weight fights until you…you know…draw money! Jose Aldo (when he shows up for a fight) doesn’t draw very well and Garbrandt, again, just won a belt. He’s still an unproven commodity in the drawing department. Let Garbrandt fight Dillashaw for the belt and make it a sole main event for either a PPV or at the very least Fox show. If it draws decent then give him another main event, this time definitely a PPV and if it draws decently again and Aldo still has the belt (and isn’t injured) then sure, let them fight each other. Until then, they both have business elsewhere.

Scott Kuczkowski: FICTION Garbrandt just beat Dominick Cruz and hinted he’d give him a rematch if he wanted one. I think that’s an excellent idea given Cruz’s dominance over the division for an insanely long time. If the UFC doesn’t go with that fight, then they should book Garbrandt vs. TJ Dillishaw; that would be another excellent fight that pretty much sells itself. Aldo hasn’t fought since July 2016 and hasn’t really said a word since being presented his belt (I won’t say he won it – it was given to him to stop him from crying). Aldo should be fighting Max Holloway, but he’s probably going to get injured, complain that he’s being treated badly, pretend to retire (again), and then wait to fight Holloway in Brazil. Whichever way it unfolds, I don’t think Garbrandt needs to fight Aldo; they should both stick to their respective divisions and defend their titles.

As Mike Goldberg was only a play-by-play announcer there was no need for the UFC to pay him tribute, and such, at UFC 207.

Mark Radulich:FICTION Does loyalty mean nothing? The man was basically the voice of the UFC for almost 20 years. Other than Joe Rogan, when you think of the UFC (outside of the actual fighting) you think of Mike Goldberg. Whether you love him or you think he’s a dummy, he was an essential part of the presentation. Sure, other people have lended their voices to the commentary and many have been much better at it than he but still, give the man his due. He was there. My memories of the best moments in the UFC feature his yelling something silly in conjunction with it. I still smile when I think about my friend Paul and I referring to him as the Mike Goldberg 3000 and just yelling random phrases he popularized (THE BEAUTIFUL ARIANNY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) etc. The tribute was fine. Good luck Goldberg, God bless.

Scott Kuczkowski: FICTION Look, I thought Mike Goldberg was just fine as a play-by-play announcer and seemed like a loyal employee during his tenure, so I think it would have been a nice idea for the UFC to give him some type of tribute. Unfortunately, Goldberg seems to be most known for his flubs on the mic (precise precision), so there was a possibility that any video tribute could have come off as a roast. Either way, it would have been nice to see the UFC acknowledge his departure. On the other hand, there isn’t much precedence for announcers departing, so perhaps it is foolish of us to expect anything more from the UFC. And there’s also the possibility that Goldberg told them he just wanted to leave without much fanfare. Perhaps he declined to have anyone make a big deal about it. At the end of the day, I don’t think a small send-off would have been the worst idea to honor a loyal employee.

It is outrageous the UFC is booking Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza vs. Tim Boetsch when Souza is deserving of a title shot or higher ranked opponent.

Mark Radulich: FACT Yeah I got nothing here. I’m assuming they are saving Yoel Romero for Michael Bisping whenever Bisping is finally ready to face him. I’m also assuming Weidman wasn’t quite ready for a fight so soon, which is why he wasn’t selected. He’s already beaten Mousasi. That leaves Robert Whitaker (6) or Rockhold (2) and I guess Rockhold his “injured.” Whitaker is on a 6 fight win streak so that would have been fine. Boetsch…I can’t read minds but I’m guessing somebody in charge of these sort of things at the UFC thinks Boetsch can be entertaining when he wants to be. I mean, who didn’t get all hot and bothered when Boetsch came back against Yushin Okami…am I right?! Anywho, strange things are afoot at the UFC these days and this is an example of it.

Scott Kuczkowski: FACT The only person Jacare should be fighting is Michael Bisping. At the very least, he should be matched up with either Yoel Romero, Luke Rockhold, or Chris Weidman – those are the other guys in the Top 5 of the division. Tim Boetsch isn’t even a Top 10 fighter, so this matchup makes no sense whatsoever. This is the type of matchmaking that frustrates fans and fighters; why the UFC would propose this is confusing and serves only to stymie the division. The UFC as of late has been booking fights haphazardly without regard for rankings or even divisional standings; I predict this will eventually hurt their business and cause fighters to try their luck elsewhere out of frustration.

SWITCH!

With Cris Cyborg’s future uncertain and Holly Holm set to fight Germaine de Randamie for the inaugural UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship title, it is possible Amanda Nunes could become the next simultaneous two division champion.

Scott Kuczkowski: FACT She could, but I don’t think anyone really cares. Whether people like her or not, Ronda Rousey was/is the biggest fight for Amanda Nunes and for pretty much any woman in the Bantamweight Division. Sure, there are other fights out there for Nunes, but she is decidedly less marketable than previous champs and I do not expect to see her and her next challenger headlining a PPV (probably co-headline). Given that, it really doesn’t matter if she moves up in weight and also wins the Featherweight Title. She may have a good fight with Holly Holm or Germaine de Randamie, and I’m sure some people will tune in to see it, but it won’t create near as much buzz as her fight with Rousey and people really won’t care if she’s getting another title. This entire situation (creating a Featherweight division) is another example of the UFC making business decisions that are confusing and apparently poorly thought out. The entire premise of this division was to get Cyborg a UFC belt, but her suspension makes that less likely to happen. Now the UFC is left with a title fight that few people care about for a division fewer people were clamoring for.

Mark Radulich: FACT She’s fought and won at 145 so I don’t see why not. I’d say she’s got some time and a number of contenders at 135 to deal with first but who are we kidding? We’re talking about Garbrandt vs Aldo right now and Bisping wants to fight Woodley instead of anybody at Middleweight, so all bets are off. If somebody in the matchmaking department at the UFC thinks Amanda Nunes vs whomever the 145lbs champion is, is a money fight then that’s what we’re going to get. Whatever draws money I’m good with.

Despite having a 4-0 record in MMA, with his latest win a submission over veteran Tatsuya Kawajiri, Kron Gracie is far from ready to fight in the UFC.

Scott Kuczkowski: FACT There was a time in the mid-90s when the Gracie name meant something in MMA. And for nostalgia-sake, it still does in some arenas. But having the last name Gracie nowadays typically just means a fighter is a great grappler with poor standup skills and questionable cardio. Perhaps Kron Gracie will break the mold and deviate from that pattern, but I doubt it. I’d be surprised to ever see another Gracie in the UFC. I don’t wish to speak badly about the Gracie family, but there are tons of 4-0 fighters out there; the only reason we are talking about this one is because of his last name.

Mark Radulich:FICTION It’s not unheard of. I did some checking around just the Featherweight division and I found the Diego Rivas had 5 fights before he was selected for TUF Latin America. He’s since gone on to win 2 fights proper in the UFC for a total record of 7 – 0. At a minimum give the guy a chance on some iteration of TUF or throw him on a non-PPV Brazil card somewhere at the beginning of the show. The worst that can happen is that he loses. Many fighters have come into the UFC stumbled and then gone on to be great or at least fine. Let’s see what he’s made of.

It’s time for Marlon Moraes to sign with the UFC and fight a top five opponent.

Scott Kuczkowski: FICTION Marlon Moraes is a fine fighter and I enjoy watching his fights, but I’m not begging the UFC to sign him. I’m sure he’d do fine and might put on some good fights, but he’s probably better off ruling the roost in WSOF than coming to the UFC and landing in deep waters. I don’t know what his aspirations are, and maybe he has desires to sign with the UFC, but he’s just not one of those guys that I’ve been waiting for the UFC to sign. If they do sign him, then great, but if they don’t, then I won’t be too upset with that.

Mark Radulich: FACT Look I’d go as far as to say that he should come in and immediately fight the Bantamweight or Flyweight champion. I’ll take either. The man hasn’t lost a fight in a dogs age. He’s held the WSOF belt for almost 3 years straight now. He’s had a number of successful defenses. If anyone deserves to come in and get an immediate title shot, it’s him. And even if he doesn’t get a title shot, give him Dominick Cruz. That would be fine.

So who won? Did Mark beat Scott to an inch of his life, or did Scott walk all over Mark? You’ve got until midnight eastern on Saturday to vote, so make sure you make your voice heard!

And that’s it for today but, as always, we’ll be back next week with another contest! And please, be sure to vote!

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