UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo is upset with former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva.
Aldo is scheduled to defend his title in the main event of UFC 212 on June 3.
Originally, Silva was also expected to fight at UFC 212 against Kelvin Gastelum. However, Gastelum was pulled from the fight after testing positive for marijuana.
After the UFC failed to book a replacement to fight Silva, the former champion encouraged fans to request refunds for their tickets. Eventually, the UFC began offering refunds.
Aldo talked about Silva’s action during an interview with FloCombat.
“I would never do such a thing. The UFC played an important role in shaping me [into] the athlete I am today. I have my merits, I worked hard and I deserved this. But I would not have achieved this by myself. I had to leave fight cards in less than a month also, and still, I encouraged the fans to attend the show.
“You can’t put the fans against the organization–doesn’t matter what happens. When everything is doing well, you are good, but whenever things change, it is everything against you. I always tried to defend the athletes that are in the beginning of their careers, the ones I thought were treated unfairly. I had a lot of problems with the UFC and I was punished many times for stepping up for other fighters.
“The UFC always made it clear that I should defend myself in order to grow in the organization. But, when you care less about other fighters and only think of your own gain, you show the fans who you really are, your real character. When you are doing fine, you are one kind of person. When things are going bad, you change your personality. I will never be like that, no matter what.”
At UFC 212, Aldo will defend his title against Interim UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway.
