What a mess UFC 223 turned out to be. What was suppose to be one of this year's most inticipated fights turned into a fiasco that is hard to put into words.
Here is a run down of all the events in order in which they took place.
Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov was originally expected to headline UFC 223 but Tony Ferguson injured his knee so he had to pull out of the fight. How did he get injured so close to fight night ? ( Answer ) He was just trying to say hello to someone.
I'm told the injury to Tony Ferguson was literally caused by a trip. The freak accident of all freak accidents. He was walking, saw someone he wasn't expecting to see, veered sharply to say hello and tripped.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) April 1, 2018
So with Tony out who was going to replace him ? Max Holloway decided he was up to the challenge. UFC re-done the posters and then made the announcement at an official media conference. Khabib vs Holloway was on. The fans were happy with the replacement and then a sudden twist of events, Max Hollow is also forced out of the event when he was deemed medically unfit to challenge for the belt because of weight cut issues.
With Max Holloway deemed unfit the UFC was in desperate need of a replacement. Lots of names were being thrown into the mix. Former UFC LW champion Anthony Pettis was the front runner but negotiations fell through. The once long time king of the LW division B.J. Penn even offered to step in to save the card.
Hey @ufc and @danawhite let me know if you need the greatest lightweight of all time to come entertain the fans in Brooklyn. I could make 155 right now. #LetsDoThis #JustScrap
— BJ Penn (@bjpenndotcom) April 6, 2018
Another LW that was sheduled to fight on the UFC 223 card, Paul Felder also offered to step in to face Nurmagomedov and it looked like the UFC was going to give him the shot but the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) put a stop to the fight due to Felder being unranked in the UFC official rankings.
Ultimately the UFC went with Al Iaquinta who was suppose to face Paul Felder at the event. We finally got our new main event.
UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta
Among all this we had Conor and his crew attacking a UFC bus in retaliation for an incident that took place earlier between one of Conor's team mates ( Artem lobov ) and Khabib. The below video shows the attack.
Here is the view from inside the bus :
Here is the video of the Khabib and his team confronting Artem lobov in a hotel which lead Conor and his team to retaliate.
Along with the damaged caused, some UFC employees have been injured. Some just minor ( and emotional ) but one more serious injury did take place ( an eye injury ).
A warrant was then issued for Conor's arrest. He turns himself in and is charged.
NYPD spokesperson,
"McGregor has been charged with three counts of assault and one of criminal mischief"
Source
As you can expect Dana White ( UFC President ) was not happy with the situation and below is a video of his reaction.
Conor makes weight --- at the police station. Pictures begin to emerge of the official police report filed against Conor. Take a close look and you can see his weight is at 155lbs.
I don't know about you but there is no way I miss this event.
UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta. April 7, 2018 Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York, United States FS1 PRELIMS 8PM/5PM ETPT, PPV MAIN CARD 10PM/7PM ETPT
Update : For UFC 223 Fight Results & Post Press Conference Click Here
What do you think of the whole situation ? Give your opinion below !