Titan FC owner explains why main event did not take place

Titan FC 31 supposed to be headlined by a lightweight title fight between Mike Ricci and Yoshiyuki Yoshida. While the convention in MMA is to allow and extra pound, title fights have to be on the nose, and Ricci weighed in at 157. Yoshida agreed to a catchweight bout, and 20% of Ricci’s purse, but on the morning of the fight changed his mind. A deeply disappointed Titan FC owner Jeff Aronson released Yoshida from his contract, and explained why.

“Let’s start at the top,” began Aronson. “Mike Ricci came in heavier than I would have liked for his title fight. Mike Ricci is a huge 155er. He was in the sauna. The pounds wouldn’t drop off any more. I was not going to risk his health. It was enough.

“I brought him in at 157. He weighed in. Yoshida weighed in. They agreed to a contracted fight, catchweight. Yoshida signed. Mike Ricci signed. Everything was 100% no issue.

“This morning I wake up, I get a call – Yoshida doesn’t feel like fighting. ‘Yoshida doesn’t feel like fighting.’ So I immediately get dressed, run to Yoshida’s room. We have a conversation with Yoshida’s management, with Yoshida himself, and literally Yoshida is sitting there shaking. He does not want to fight Mike Ricci.

“Now, whether Mike Ricci would have hit 155 or not – which there’s NO excuse EVER for not hitting the weight, because you’re a professional, you’re paid to hit the weight, you know what, you should make the weight. But an answer to a two-pound difference of ‘I just don’t feel like fighting’ after you have contractually obligated yourself to fight… Mike Ricci had given 20% of his purse to Yoshida. It was done. The deal was done. And this morning he decided to pull out of the fight, just hours before the event…

“At that point I made the decision, I do not want someone like this representing Titan Fighting. And I think that had Mike even made the weight, there would have been a reason Yoshida didn’t fight. I stick by my decision and I a can only go forward.

Aronson then concluded on a positive note.

“You have guys like Desmond Green now, who just shocked the world, literally, with that Miguel Torres fight, who are the future,” said Aronson. “I just want to go forward, get Mike Ricci healthy. I truly believe Mike Ricci is the best 155er in the world, not in UFC right now. I believe Des Green is the top 145er, not in UFC right now.

“And I don’t just believe it. I would put my money against any other promotion that wants to go and do an event, on every level in every weight class, we’ll figure it out. My guys, we’re going to come out ahead. These guys come to finish and they do their thing. So I’m very happy with how Desmond did tonight. And you know what? Mike will be back and we’ll get that sorted out.”