Andre Pederneiras, the head coach of Nova Uniao, believes his fighters should move out of Brazil.
Nova Uniao is the home to many of the best Brazilian fighters in the world including, UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo, former UFC Bantamweight Champion Renan Barao, and top flyweight contender Jussier Formiga.
“Brazil is going through some tough times. If I could, I would send them all abroad,” Pederneiras told AG Fights in Brazil. “I said it before, they can leave today. I see a lot more advantages outside than staying in the conditions Brazil offers today. I train them so they can change their lives. If I can’t do that here, then I really want them to move away. No matter what team they join.
“If it were up to me, I’d send them all away today. But it’s up to them. Jose Aldo is just too attached to his roots. He won’t leave his neighborhood. If I tell him to move to another one, he gets upset. Aldo has financial stability, though. If I could give a piece of advice to other fighters, not only from my team, it would be to migrate to the USA or one of those countries with better conditions than Brazil. It’s too hard to be an athlete in Brazil today, training and growing financially.”
Aldo is currently training for his next title fight. At UFC 212, on June 3, Aldo will defend his title in the main event against Interim UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway.
