White: If Iaquinta wins, we’ll figure title technicalities out
“Per the New York State Athletic Commission … It’s an actual regulation that a guy who doesn’t make exactly on weight cannot be the champion. So we’ll see.”
It’s the craziest lead up to a title fight in the sport’s history. The most famous fighter in MMA, Conor McGregor, never defended his belt, so it was stripped, and Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson were set to fight. Three times previously they had been matched up, and the fourth time was not a charm – Ferguson slipped on a cable and injured his knee.
Then featherweight champ Max Holloway stepped up, but he was coming off an ankle injury, and was declared medically unfit to fight. Then former UFC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis lost his opponent Michael Chiesa. Chiesa was cut by flying glass after McGregor attacked the bus he was on, having flown across the Atlantic with over a dozen hapless hangers-on in a failed effort to get to an amused Nurmagomedov, who had had words McGregor’s SBGi teammate Artem Lobov earlier in the week.
Then former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis was offered the fight, but he apparently overplayed his hand, held out for more money than the UFC was willing to offer, and was passed over for Paul Felder. Felder, however, was ranked just outside the UFC’s top 15, and wasn’t approved by the New York State Athletic Commission.
Felder’s opponent was to have been #11 ranked Al Iaquinta, and unless a piano falls on his head, which is a strong possibility, he will fight Nurmagomedov in the main event of UFC 223. However, Iaquinta weighed in at 155.2, which puts him just over the title fight limit of 155 (non-title fights in MMA are traditionally given an extra pound). So Iaquinta can fight Nurmagomedov for the title, and if ‘The Eagle’ wins, he gets the belt, but if he loses, the NYSAC can’t sanction Iaquinta for the title.
Pettis stepped on the scale at 155.2, just over the mark for a title bout, but he was not provided an opportunity to weigh in again. Pettis was apparently offered a fight vs. Nurmagomedov, but reportedly wanted too much money.
Dana White: Al Iaquinta will be ‘champ’ if he beats Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 223
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By Dan Hiergesell@ Apr 6, 2018, 10:22pm EDT
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Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Al Iaquinta will have the opportunity of a lifetime tomorrow night (Sat., April. 7, 2018) at UFC 223 live on pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, when he takes on undefeated Russian contender Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event.
Iaquinta, who was originally slated to fight Paul Felder on the opening bout of the main card, is filling the spot that Tony Ferguson, Max Holloway, Anthony Pettis, and Irish Dragon couldn’t.
Luckily, Iaquinta was able to wiggle his way into the UFC 223 headliner, allowing Nurmagomedov to stay on the depleted PPV card and giving his fellow New York natives something to cheer about during a week full of turmoil. And while Iaquinta is technically not in line to win the lightweight title should he defeat Nurmagomedov after weighing in .2 pounds over the 155-pound limit, UFC president Dana White reassured fight fans that Ragin’ Al will still be considered champion if he pulls off the impossible.
If you look at where Al was ranked, and his last five fights, he made the most sense, said White at the UFC’s 25th anniversary press conference, as transcribed by Dan Hiergesell for MMA Mania. The problem with Al was he was 155.2. That was with his underwear on. The commission literally weighed his underwear, and they were .2, so he made weight.
The title is on the line. As far as the commission goes, Khabib is the one who is eligible for the title. But obviously if ‘Ragin’ Al wins this fight, he’s the champ. If you beat the man, you are the man.
We as the fans and as the people know who the champ is if you win the fight. If you win the fight, you’re the champ. To be the man, you beat the man, and if you beat the man, it’s hard to deny that he’s not the champion. All technicalities we will figure out after the fight.
Per the New York State Athletic Commission, this is not a title fight for him. It’s an actual regulation that a guy who doesn’t make exactly on weight cannot be the champion. So we’ll see. Obviously, if he wins this fight, we’ll figure that out.
As a massive underdog, Iaquinta is going to have to shock the world if he’s going to beat Nurmagomedov, who has willingly agreed to fight a handful of different fighters this past week. This may be one of Iaquinta’s only chances to hoist UFC gold so it will be interesting to see how he attacks the first couple of rounds.
After all, the Long Island realtor was only scheduled to go three.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 223 fight card on fight night (click here), starting with the FOX Sports 1 Prelims at 8 p.m. ET before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET.