It appears Al Iaquinta is back.
After nabbing a controversial split decision over Jorge Masvidal back in April 2015, Iaquinta blasted fans who booed the decision. We have not seen “Raging” in the Octagon since. A recent Twitter post from Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) matchmaker Sean Shelby revealed Iaquinta is eyeing a return:
https://twitter.com/seanshelby/status/824884216995328000
Iaquinta recently made an appearance on Submission Radio. While many believed Iaquinta took a hiatus from the UFC to take a stand against the promotion, “Raging” said it more so boiled down to his health and compensation (via Flo Combat):
“I don’t even know if it’s that I was fighting for what I believe in. I was hurting, my body was hurting a lot, I was not getting paid a lot, I got hurt. I felt like I was kind of hung out (to) dry for a little bit. So I took a little break and see, you know, (if) maybe the Real Estate thing is what I want to do, maybe it’s not. It’s just… it’s tough.”
Former UFC title challenger Thiago Alves recently revealed he is moving back up to the 170-pound division. Could Iaquinta welcome him back to the division? The lightweight said it’s possible.
“I think Thiago Alves. He couldn’t make 155, so I’d be willing to go up to 170 if he just wants to chill out. I’ll go up to 170 and fight him. I think that’d be good, that’d be fun. I wouldn’t have to cut weight. He fought Jim Miller.”
“Raging” is currently on a four-fight winning streak. The Serra-Longo fighter was first seen on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) season 15. He was in the finals, but was submitted by Michael Chiesa in the first round.
Since the defeat, Iaquinta has gone 7-1 inside the Octagon. It’ll be interesting to see if the time off helps or hinders his performance.
