There is a prince and a joker in the featherweight division, but Jose Aldo is king.
With his countrymen surrounding the cage, the featherweight champion successfully defended his throne for a second time against perennial contender Chad Mendes. The fight was the main event of UFC 179 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Mendes, a world-class wrestler by all accounts, showed significant improvement in his stand-up, punishing Aldo on the feet at times with a lead uppercut. There weren’t any flash knockouts or crowd surfing this time around. Mendes has greatly evolved from that one-dimensional contender two years ago, and it showed Saturday night.
The Team Alpha Male member heavily relied on his newfound stand-up skills almost to a fault, opting to stand and bang with one of the best strikers in the world. There were a few takedown attempts, but for the most part, Mendes seemed content to stand in front of Aldo and fight with his fists.
The Brazilian obliged the gutsy contender in a highly entertaining stand-up scrap that left the crowd on its feet.
Aldo’s speed and technique were on full display as he edged Mendes in a kickboxing match. He kept the burly contender at bay with a laser-accurate jab while stepping in at times to rip hooks to the head and body. Mendes, who was dropped multiple times in the fight, showed a tremendous chin and a tenacity to continue to remain competitive in the stand-up exchanges.
But the night belonged to Aldo. He earned another unanimous-decision nod and tied Jon Jones for the third-most consecutive title defenses in UFC history. After the fight, the champ complimented Mendes on being a tough outing while also taking aim at top featherweight contender Conor McGregor.
“I think the court is complete here. I’m the king, Chad’s the prince and now we have a joker,” Aldo told UFC commentator Brian Stann.
McGregor is slated to fight Dennis Siver on January 18 at UFC Fight Night 59. A win should put him next in line to challenge Aldo for the featherweight title.
Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA writer for Rocktagon.
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