Brendan Schaub wants Salt Lake City to leave the seats empty.
UFC 332 lost its planned main event when Valentina Shevchenko vacated the flyweight title with shoulder and back injuries. Natalia Silva and Wang Cong now fight for the vacant belt on October 3 at the Delta Center, on the first numbered card to put its main card on CBS. Schaub did not take it well on his YouTube channel.
It’s a tragedy of a main event. That is, hands down, no exaggerating, that is the worst main event in mixed martial arts history. Wang Cong should never be —- mainlining a card. Should sure as —- not be fighting for a title shot. That is mind-blowing. There are several other women that are way more well-deserving.
His test for how thin the booking is involves Dana White.
I guarantee you if you went up to Dana White and go, ‘Dana, I will give you $1 million, name three opponents Wang Cong has fought.’ He could not do it. ‘How did Wang Cong win her last three fights?’ We all know it’s a decision. Guarantee Dana White cannot do that.
Schaub blames the Paramount deal for taking the pressure off.
I know the UFC, in hindsight it’s better that the pay-per-view model’s not around for us anymore in America, but this is the byproduct. Because now that they know they have your money, they know they don’t have to bank on selling you on $79.99 every month, this is the downside.
He is not asking for much in return.
This is the problem: Outside of Natalia Silva and Wang Cong, the fight card is amazing, one of the best of the year. All you had to do was give us a suitable main event and this card’s cooking. All I want is Salt Lake City to not sell this thing out, so it forces the UFC’s hand to give us better main events.
The case for the fight is stronger than he allows. Silva is 8-0 in the UFC and has won 14 straight overall, with recent wins over Rose Namajunas, Alexa Grasso and Jessica Andrade. Wang has won four in a row since her only loss, beat Tracy Cortez in July, and holds a kickboxing win over Shevchenko from 2015.
Paulo Costa had pitched himself as the alternative. He said last week that he offered the UFC an interim light heavyweight title fight for the card and was turned down.
