Jose Aldo suggests that the UFC should cut Movsar Evloev

Movsar Evloev is undefeated in his career, ranked No. 1 in the UFC featherweight division and about to face Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 333 for the weight class' gold. However, Jose Aldo does not believe the Russian deserves the title shot. The former UFC featherweight champion argued that the promotion should consider more than a fighter's position in the rankings when deciding who gets an opportunity to compete for a belt.

Jose Aldo criticizes Movsar Evloev's fighting style

Since making his UFC debut in April 2019, Evloev has made 10 appearances in the promotion, winning all of those fights by decision. Despite his success inside the Octagon, the Russian has been criticized for not delivering entertaining fights. Aldo agrees with that assessment and believes it should have been taken into consideration before Evloev was granted a title shot.

In fact, the Brazilian thinks that Evloev's position in the rankings should not guarantee him a shot at the title. According to Aldo, the UFC needs to consider a fighter's ability to attract fans and generate interest in its events, something he believes Evloev does not deliver.

"The UFC isn't just an organization that has to follow a ranking system," Aldo told MMA Fighting. "It's a business, it's entertainment. It's not a matter of, 'I'm number one, so I have to fight for the title.' No. Evloev is ranked No. 1 in the division, if I'm not mistaken, and if I were the president, I'd never put him in there."

Aldo not only disagrees with Evloev being given a title shot, but has gone as far as saying he would cut the undefeated contender if he were in charge of the promotion. The former UFC featherweight champion then explained why he believes Evloev does not bring enough commercial value to the UFC, criticizing the Russian's fighting style and lack of finishes.

"He could beat everybody," Aldo said. "I'd wait for him to lose for the first time and then cut him because he's a guy who doesn't sell, a guy who puts on boring fights, a guy who doesn't draw attention, who just stays inactive. So why would I give him that opportunity? I want to sell out my arena. I want my event to grow. There's a lot involved."

Jose Aldo praises Jean Silva and Alex Pereira as entertaining fighters

In order to explain his argument, Aldo cited Jean Silva and Alex Pereira as examples of fighters who can draw attention through their performances. The Brazilian said Silva's aggressive style makes him entertaining to watch, even if he loses fights, while Pereira's knockout power has helped him become one of the UFC's biggest stars.

"Jean Silva could lose three fights, but he's a guy who comes forward, a guy who puts on a show," Aldo said. "That's what fans want to see. Poatan was already almost 35 when he joined the UFC, and he kept growing. He became champion in one division and then champion in another. And in terms of technical skills, let's be honest, he doesn't have an all-around skill set."

Speaking about Pereira, Aldo compared the former two-division champion to Mike Tyson, pointing to his ability to finish opponents despite not having an all-around skill set.

"He has a good level of kickboxing. His kickboxing is excellent, world-class. But let's look at it: his wrestling is still developing, he's still training his ground game, and he's still developing in that area. So there are certain things he still needs to work on. But the guy is a Mike Tyson. He goes in there and knocks people out. There are so many things you have to consider that, to me, this guy is one of the greatest of all-time."

Evloev will have the opportunity to prove his worth when he challenges Alexander Volkanovski for the featherweight title at UFC 333 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.