The UFC had a crazy year with Conor McGregor officially becoming the king of the promotion. However, it set to end with the return of former women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey at UFC 207. Here are the latest UFC news and updates around the association in the past several days.
Conor McGregor out for 10 months
UFC president Dana White has confirmed that the reigning UFC lightweight champion is out of action for 10 months. McGregor is not injured but he will become a father and wait for the birth of his first child with girlfriend, Dee Devlin.
"His girl gets super stressed out when he fights. He doesn't want her having any of that stress while she's pregnant. He's good. He should take time off. He's been fighting nonstop. Nothing wrong with him taking time off. It's good for him and her, and it's good for the baby," White said on UFC Unfiltered.
The 28-year-old Irishman has been very busy since December 2015 when he defeated Jose Aldo for the featherweight title. He went on to fight three times in 2016, losing to Nate Diaz in March, winning the rematch in August and becoming the lightweight champ in November.
Ronda Rousey is in 'sick shape' heading to UFC 207
"Rowdy" will make her return to the Octagon on December 30 at UFC 207. She will face Amanda Nunes for the UFC women's bantamweight championship. It is a tough test for Rousey, who is coming off her very first loss against Holly Holm last year.
However, UFC president Dana White has seen the former champ and he is very impressed with her physique. He told the promotion's official website that Rousey is already down to 135 pounds and she is in 'sick shape.'
"Obviously, the return of Ronda is a big deal. She is taken this thing so seriously. Guess what she is weighing right now? 135 lbs. She is doing everything she can to keep her weight on. She is in sick shape," White said.
Jose Aldo takes another shot at UFC and Conor McGregor
In an interview with Combate, the new featherweight champion took shots at the UFC, as well as McGregor and his camp. He called the promotion a "mess" and he believes the lightweight champ is ducking Khabib Nurmagomedov.
"The UFC has been a mess for a while now. Not only for me, it's been happening way before that. It embarrassed featherweight and now embarrasses lightweight. Khabib Nurmagomedov signed two contracts to fight for the title and still hasn't," Aldo said.
