Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight champion Jose Aldo is eager to get his hands on interim champion Conor McGregor once he recovers from his recent injury.

Aldo said that he and McGregor will eventually face each other inside the Octagon. And when their long-awaited fight happens, Aldo expressed confidence he will keep his featherweight title and guaranteed that he will hurt McGregor big time in the showdown.

"We will run through him no matter when the fight happens, but his time will come," Aldo said in an interview with Rock Bola as translated by MMA Fighting. "When it does, you can be sure we will smash him."

The fighter known as "Scarface" was supposed to defend his title against McGregor at UFC 189 on Saturday night, but their highly anticipated showdown was cancelled after he sustained a rib injury.

Aldo, who holds a 25-1 record with 14 knockout victories, tried to make it into the fight, but he eventually pulled out after failing to recover in time for the showdown.

When asked about his current condition, Aldo said that he is recovering well from the injury and could return to training in two weeks after several examinations in the coming days.

"I'm still recovering, should be back to training in two weeks," Aldo added. "I'll do more exams. As soon as the doctor clears me, I'll be back to training."

Following Aldo's decision to pull out of the fight, UFC selected Chad Mendes to challenge McGregor with the interim title at stake. McGregor scored a second-round knockout win against Mendes, keeping his status as the top contender for Aldo's featherweight title.

UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta told reporters that they will arrange the Aldo vs. McGregor showdown as soon as possible. Fertitta hinted that the UFC featherweight title fight could take place on January 2 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Because of McGregor's impressive win against Mendes, he is now considered a 2-1 favorite to win against Aldo. Nick Kalikas of MMA Odds Breaker told ESPN that McGregor performed enough to prove he has a good shot to take the UFC featherweight title in his next fight.

"McGregor answered several important questions, displaying both a terrific chin and a resilient spirit when facing adversity for the first time in his UFC career, despite entering the fight amidst rumors of an injured knee," Kalikas said. "At this point, I have to open Conor near a 2-to-1 favorite."