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WARNING: If 400 words is too long for you, this isn't for you. Go read another Fedor or Conor thread.
BJ and Frankie both took fights against Yair, both were favors by the UFC. Now Yair doesn’t want to reciprocate.
Before the Penn fight, Yair was 9-1 (5-0 in the UFC). What sense did it make for the UFC to match him up against a nearly 40-year-old BJ Penn, who would be coming off a 3 year lay-off and was 1-3-1 in his past 5 fights? The UFC blessed Yair with that fight to build Yair’s star and showcase his electrifying standup to a much bigger audience that a name like BJ Penn attracts.
Next, the UFC fast tracks him into the title picture with a matchup against a perennial top 3 Featherweight, a prime Frankie Edgar. I understand what the UFC was trying to do, but it is extremely tough to justify that Yair deserved a Featherweight matchup with that type of magnitude. Before the Penn fight, Yair was coming off a split decision win against (a 12-8) Bruce Leeroy. I would argue he didn’t, let’s ask James Vick (9-1 in the UFC, has never gotten a top 5 opponent) if Yair deserved a title eliminator.
If he had finished Frankie, no doubt in my mind his next fight would have been for the title. Maybe deservingly so, but did he really earn his stature within the Featherweight division to that point? Absolutely not. The UFC granted him two HUGE favors because of what Yair could bring to the UFC. Frankie absolutely wrecked Yair, but Dana attempts to get him right back into the title picture with a fight against a highly ranked Lamas, who, too, is coming off a bad loss. Yair turns it down. Alternatively, Dana attempts to make a fight against the hype train that is Zabit. Turns it down, cites Zabit’s low ranking. I’m sorry Yair, where was that logic when you were gifted a fight against Frankie. Anyone that follows the sport understands how good Zabit looks, I would argue that a win against him also gets Yair back into the title picture. What does Yair want, another fight with Penn? Should we see if Kenny Florian is interested?
I completely agree with Dana, get rid of this guy. He gets fast tracked to the top of the Featherweight division but doesn’t feel he owes anything to the UFC. I am sick of guys getting their shot but then unwilling to even entertain a matchup with a lower ranked guy. Yair v. Zabit could have been a fight of the year candidate, win or lose he’d be getting a tremendous amount of recognition. Yair was in no positon to big dick anyone, have fun in Bellator.
Sincerely,
Not Dana White
BJ and Frankie both took fights against Yair, both were favors by the UFC. Now Yair doesn’t want to reciprocate.
Before the Penn fight, Yair was 9-1 (5-0 in the UFC). What sense did it make for the UFC to match him up against a nearly 40-year-old BJ Penn, who would be coming off a 3 year lay-off and was 1-3-1 in his past 5 fights? The UFC blessed Yair with that fight to build Yair’s star and showcase his electrifying standup to a much bigger audience that a name like BJ Penn attracts.
Next, the UFC fast tracks him into the title picture with a matchup against a perennial top 3 Featherweight, a prime Frankie Edgar. I understand what the UFC was trying to do, but it is extremely tough to justify that Yair deserved a Featherweight matchup with that type of magnitude. Before the Penn fight, Yair was coming off a split decision win against (a 12-8) Bruce Leeroy. I would argue he didn’t, let’s ask James Vick (9-1 in the UFC, has never gotten a top 5 opponent) if Yair deserved a title eliminator.
If he had finished Frankie, no doubt in my mind his next fight would have been for the title. Maybe deservingly so, but did he really earn his stature within the Featherweight division to that point? Absolutely not. The UFC granted him two HUGE favors because of what Yair could bring to the UFC. Frankie absolutely wrecked Yair, but Dana attempts to get him right back into the title picture with a fight against a highly ranked Lamas, who, too, is coming off a bad loss. Yair turns it down. Alternatively, Dana attempts to make a fight against the hype train that is Zabit. Turns it down, cites Zabit’s low ranking. I’m sorry Yair, where was that logic when you were gifted a fight against Frankie. Anyone that follows the sport understands how good Zabit looks, I would argue that a win against him also gets Yair back into the title picture. What does Yair want, another fight with Penn? Should we see if Kenny Florian is interested?
I completely agree with Dana, get rid of this guy. He gets fast tracked to the top of the Featherweight division but doesn’t feel he owes anything to the UFC. I am sick of guys getting their shot but then unwilling to even entertain a matchup with a lower ranked guy. Yair v. Zabit could have been a fight of the year candidate, win or lose he’d be getting a tremendous amount of recognition. Yair was in no positon to big dick anyone, have fun in Bellator.
Sincerely,
Not Dana White
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