Things are certainly looking up UFC lightweight John Makdessi (13-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC), who went from defending himself in the wake of a lawsuit to taking a high-profile fight against Donald Cerrone (27-6 MMA, 14-3 UFC) at UFC 187.
Several top lightweights campaigned for the spot against Cerrone, who’s riding a seven-fight win streak. But it was Makdessi, who this past weekend earned a knockout victory, who will get the opportunity. The UFC announced the bout on Twitter.
MMAjunkie first reported the dropoff of Cerrone’s original opponent, top-ranked contender Khabib Nurmagomedov (22-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC), who suffered a knee injury and was forced to withdraw from the May 23 pay-per-view event at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Makdessi stopped injury replacement Shane Campell at UFC 186, putting himself back in the win column after a decision loss to Alan Patrick that snapped a three-fight win streak.
But the day before he stepped into the cage, reps for UFC middleweight Gegard Mousasi revealed a lawsuit that had been filed against the fighter and apparel company Fear the Fighter for unpaid sponsorship money.
In an interview earlier this week with MMAjunkie, Makdessi said he played no part in the business side of Fear the Fighter and had no knowledge of the lawsuit beyond what he’d heard on the Internet, as well as a confrontation with UFC middleweight Michael Bisping prior to UFC 186.
Makes said his brother, David Makdessi, was responsible for negotiations with fighters and that the company was in the process of changing hands, at which point outstanding debts would be paid.
Mousasi’s rep, Nima Safapour, released the following statement to MMAjunkie in response to Makdessi’s interview:
“As we are in a pending litigation, we are limited in how much we can discuss the case. Nor do we care do go back and forth publicly. Therefore, Mr. Mousasi plans on focusing on the litigation ahead unless Fear the Fighter and John Makdessi do, in fact, pay the outstanding debt they owe. With that being said, we filed our lawsuit on or about January 2015, and have yet to receive any notification from the alleged new owners or the opposing council that payment is pending and/or forthcoming.
“John Makdessi has made some statements that are inconsistent at best. First and foremost, ignorance is not a legal defense. The laws within the legal system are based on the reasonable standards of society. It is unreasonable for an adult to claim that they should not be held responsible for willingly signing a legal and binding document. The reason for such a standard is that if ignorance was a legal defense then no contract would be enforceable because whenever anyone would want to breach an agreement they could simply claim they did not read or understand the document they signed. The result would be catastrophic because a contract or legal document would become a meaningless instrument in our society that would NOT protect the interests of the parties engaged in said situation.
“John Makdessi is holding a foolish position that it is reasonable for him to have invested in Fear The Fighter in order to create a benefit for himself, but he is unwilling to assume the liability associated with his intentional involvement with the company.
“Our focus now is to proceed forward with the legal process at hand, and it is up to the courts in Canada to correct the injustices that Mr. Mousasi has endured as a result of being associated with Fear The Fighter. We stand behind the facts, and are prepared to place our case in the hands of the legal system.”
For the latest on UFC 187, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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