Tag: Chad Mendes

Chad Mendes vs. Jose Aldo 2: Early Head-to-Toe Breakdown

Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes will have their rematch. Lance Pugmire of the LA Times first reported that the top two featherweights in the world would meet at the Staples Center August 2 at UFC 176 earlier this month.
Their first meeting happened at UFC 14…

Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes will have their rematch. Lance Pugmire of the LA Times first reported that the top two featherweights in the world would meet at the Staples Center August 2 at UFC 176 earlier this month.

Their first meeting happened at UFC 142 in Brazil. Aldo retained his world championship with a brilliant turnaround knee knockout in the closing seconds of the first round.

Since that time, Mendes has reeled off five consecutive wins with four KO/TKO performances.

This is truly a matchup of the elites. They are without question the top two 145-pound fighters in the world today, and we will see how things shake out from LA this summer.

Here is your early look at how the rematch breaks down from head-to-toe.

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Chad Mendes Is the Correct Fighter to Challenge Jose Aldo at UFC 176

When it comes down to it, Chad Mendes was the right choice as the next challenger to Jose Aldo’s UFC featherweight championship. Mendes will get his rematch with Aldo this summer at UFC 176, as Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.
A …

When it comes down to it, Chad Mendes was the right choice as the next challenger to Jose Aldo‘s UFC featherweight championship. Mendes will get his rematch with Aldo this summer at UFC 176, as Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

A quick look at the official UFC rankings leaves a somewhat sour taste in the mouth. 

Frankie Edgar is sitting there, and as a former UFC champion, he has the resume to back his credibility. But he’s locked in to face BJ Penn while the current season of The Ultimate Fighter airs. 

Ricardo Lamas is next, but he was given his shot earlier this year and came up empty. Cub Swanson could solidify his status with a win over Jeremy Stephens in a few months.

Dustin Poirier has a bout scheduled, Chan Sung Jung is injured, and Dennis Siver is suspended. Clay Guida, Nik Lentz and Stephens round out the rest of the rankings, but none of them are ready to face Scarface, either.

That leaves Mendes as the one to seek redemption.

Let’s take a quick trip back in time to 2012. Coming off back-to-back decision victories in his first two UFC fights, Money was poised to remain unbeaten and take the strap from Aldo. He even ventured to Brazil, the native home of the champion, to challenge him.

Moments into the fight, Mendes seemed cool, calm and confident. The Team Alpha Male fighter and former NCAA wrestler shot in and had a good takedown attempt on Aldo. However, a quick grab of the cage kept Aldo from hitting the canvas.

In just a matter of seconds, Aldo landed a knee that floored Mendes, knocking him out with one second remaining in the first round and subsequently setting off a wild celebration. 

Mendes didn’t sulk in his home or gym, taking a fight a few months later against Cody McKenzie. Thirty-one seconds after the bell sounded, Mendes had finished McKenzie with a body shot. He did the same to Yaotzin Meza in under two minutes to close out the year and added a third straight first-round victory when he stopped Darren Elkins to start 2013.

Last August, Mendes became the first fighter to score a knockout win over Guida when he finished the veteran in the third with a series of strikes. A decision win over Lentz to complete the year set him up for Aldo.

Having just turned 29 years old, Mendes remains in the prime of his career. He’s getting better, improving his striking, wrestling and fundamentals each day. While Aldo is also doing the same, with his skills and talent, Mendes is the right man to challenge him for the gold belt right now. 

He still has several more months and a full training camp to go through, and by the time we reach August and the Staples Center in Los Angeles, we could be looking at the new UFC champion and man to end Team Alpha Male’s long drought in title matches. 

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Rematch Alert: Jose Aldo Will Meet Chad Mendes at UFC 176


(Photo via Getty)

This afternoon, the LA Times reported the UFC booked Chad Mendes in a rematch with featherweight champ Jose Aldo. The fight will take place at UFC 176 this August in Los Angeles.

This is one instance of a rematch we don’t necessarily mind seeing (unlike some rematches that don’t ever need to happen again. Ever.). Mendes has been on a warpath since losing to Aldo back at UFC 142 in 2012, winning five fights in a row over the likes of Clay Guida and…Clay Guida.


(Photo via Getty)

This afternoon, the LA Times reported that the UFC booked Chad Mendes in a rematch with featherweight champ Jose Aldo. The fight will take place at UFC 176 this August in Los Angeles.

This is one instance of a rematch we don’t necessarily mind seeing (unlike some rematches that don’t ever need to happen again. Ever.). Mendes has been on a warpath since losing to Aldo back at UFC 142 in 2012, winning five fights in a row over the likes of Clay Guida and…Clay Guida.

Okay so the division is a little thin, but Mendes’ style still poses a threat to Aldo who, according to Dana White, has been looking like shit lately despite outclassing the entire division. If you recall, some say a controversial fence-grab gave Aldo the leverage to ward off a Mendes takedown and knee his head into the stands. Perhaps this is the truth and Mendes is the man to beat Aldo? Unfortunately for Mendes, wonder-coach Duane “Bang” Ludwig is no longer available to help him, which can only be a detriment.

At the time of writing, no other bookings have been announced for UFC 176. We’ll post more updates as we get them.

“It’s a Step in the Right Direction for Men”: Don Frye and Other MMA Stars React to Hip Show [VIDEO]

(Props: MMAInsidetheCageTV)

Our old friends Casey Oxendine and Cyrus Fees were at the Arnold Classic last weekend, giving a bunch of MMA stars their first look at Hip Show, the 2-on-2 Russian MMA league that we’ll be sponsoring for its AXS TV debut on March 14th. Aside from Bobby Lashley stating the obvious (“Man, somebody’s gonna die”), everybody was super-positive about it. Some notable quotes…

Mark Coleman: “I wish was 20 years younger, it seems I’d fit right in on what we got goin’ here.”

Don Frye: “Obviously the Russians have to invent something this fantastic. It’s a step in the right direction for men.”

Lyoto Machida: “I don’t know…it looks crazy, no? But I can try it, just for training maybe.”

Bobby Lashley: “Have you seen the movie Running Man? This is one step away from there.”

Urijah Faber: “That’s awesome. I can’t wait to watch it.” (Chad Mendes then suggests he and Urijah would “wreck shop” as a 145-pound Hip Show team.)

Ryan Bader: “That’s pretty crazy. I would watch it definitely…I think it would be pretty fun if you had a good partner. [I would choose] Weidman, we’d tag-team some guys over here.”

Shonie Carter: “I got some homies over in the hood off the West Side of Chicago that would love to do this…I’m doin’ this, son. I’m doin’ this. I’m just sayin’. That shit right here? That’s gonna be me.”

When Hip Show comes to the U.S., I’m putting my money on Shonie Carter & West Side Homie TBA. Tune in to AXS TV tonight at 9 p.m. to see Casey and Cyrus discuss Hip Show on Inside MMA, and be sure to watch the best-of special next Saturday, March 14th!


(Props: MMAInsidetheCageTV)

Our old friends Casey Oxendine and Cyrus Fees were at the Arnold Classic last weekend, giving a bunch of MMA stars their first look at Hip Show, the 2-on-2 Russian MMA league that we’ll be sponsoring for its AXS TV debut on March 14th. Aside from Bobby Lashley stating the obvious (“Man, somebody’s gonna die”), everybody was super-positive about it. Some notable quotes…

Mark Coleman: “I wish was 20 years younger, it seems I’d fit right in on what we got goin’ here.”

Don Frye: ”Obviously the Russians have to invent something this fantastic. It’s a step in the right direction for men.”

Lyoto Machida: “I don’t know…it looks crazy, no? But I can try it, just for training maybe.”

Bobby Lashley: ”Have you seen the movie Running Man? This is one step away from there.”

Urijah Faber: “That’s awesome. I can’t wait to watch it.” (Chad Mendes then suggests he and Urijah would “wreck shop” as a 145-pound Hip Show team.)

Ryan Bader: “That’s pretty crazy. I would watch it definitely…I think it would be pretty fun if you had a good partner. [I would choose] Weidman, we’d tag-team some guys over here.”

Shonie Carter: “I got some homies over in the hood off the West Side of Chicago that would love to do this…I’m doin’ this, son. I’m doin’ this. I’m just sayin’. That shit right here? That’s gonna be me.”

When Hip Show comes to the U.S., I’m putting my money on Shonie Carter & West Side Homie TBA. Tune in to AXS TV tonight at 9 p.m. to see Casey and Cyrus discuss Hip Show on Inside MMA, and be sure to watch the best-of special next Saturday, March 14th!

Chad Mendes vs. Cub Swanson Is the Right Decision for Featherweight Title Bout

Jose Aldo successfully defended his UFC featherweight championship against Ricardo Lamas at UFC 169, and talk at the post-fight press conference immediately shifted to a potential lightweight title fight against Anthony Pettis.
That fight is not set in…

Jose Aldo successfully defended his UFC featherweight championship against Ricardo Lamas at UFC 169, and talk at the post-fight press conference immediately shifted to a potential lightweight title fight against Anthony Pettis.

That fight is not set in stone, but if it does happen, UFC President Dana White says Chad Mendes vs. Cub Swanson makes the most sense, and I agree.

Chad Mendes is the No. 1 ranked contender in the division, and he is next in line regardless of if Aldo moves up or not. That makes his appearance in the hypothetical fight for the vacant belt a no brainer. Mendes has done everything to earn another shot at the gold.

Frankie Edgar is scheduled to coach the next season of The Ultimate Fighter alongside BJ Penn. That takes him out of the running due to scheduling conflicts, but it could make their featherweight encounter a potential title eliminator.

That leaves Ricardo Lamas, Swanson and Chan Sung Jung as the likely candidates for the second slot.

Lamas and The Korean Zombie are both coming off losses in title bouts.

Lamas has never been able to excite the MMA fans enough for him to leapfrog anyone, and after his loss at UFC 169, he will need a few wins before getting another shot at the featherweight title. The Korean Zombie, on the other hand, has shown the ability to get the crowd behind him.

However, with his time away from the cage—and coming off a loss—it is not the best for business for the UFC to select him to go opposite Mendes.

Swanson is the right choice.

The Jackson’s MMA featherweight is on a five-fight win streak with four TKO/KO finishes in that run. Moreover, Swanson is a charismatic personality that can connect with the fans better than his competition for this spot.

Also, Mendes and Swanson are the only two contenders ranked in the top five on winning streaks.

A Mendes vs. Swanson fight would be a rematch of a meeting between the two in 2010 during their WEC tenure. Mendes took that fight by unanimous decision, but that fight is in the distant past now.

The two featherweight title contenders are vastly improved since that time. They have continued to develop their MMA skills, and they have shown a propensity to finish fights in recent times. It makes the rematch an exciting matchup.

This is the best fight the UFC could promote for a vacant title with Edgar tied up with other duties.

Of the top-five ranked fighters, these are the only two who make sense in the current landscape of the UFC. Mendes vs. Swanson is the right choice, and should Aldo make the move to lightweight, the UFC should jump to finalize this title bout.

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Dana White: Chad Mendes vs. Cub Swanson Title Fight Makes Sense If Aldo Moves Up

So much has surrounded UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and his future plans in the promotion.
Will he stay at featherweight and fend off the division’s core group of contenders?
Will he move to lightweight and challenge titleholder Anthony Pettis …

So much has surrounded UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and his future plans in the promotion.

Will he stay at featherweight and fend off the division’s core group of contenders?

Will he move to lightweight and challenge titleholder Anthony Pettis for superfight supremacy?

Or will he take his talents to South Beach and former “The Big Four?”

Either way the cookie crumbles, the immediate pallet of featherweight hopefuls will be there to harvest the crumbs.

Title threats like Chad Mendes, Cub Swanson, Dustin Poirier and even Frankie Edgar have all done their own part to separate themselves in a rather tightly knit weight class. Win streaks, flashy finishes and substantially brutal performances have given each one of them good reason to challenge Aldo.

But what if the 27-year-old Brazilian decides to beef up and leap to 155? 

Dana White recently explained the 145-pound division’s future title scene on Fox Sports 1’s “Fox Sports Live,” originally reported by MMA Junkie.

“It would probably be—listen, I’m not making a fight announcement here or anything—but what would make sense is Cub Swanson and Chad Mendes would probably be fighting for that title, and Pettis and Aldo would fight at 155,” said White.

Now nothing is set in stone regarding Aldo vs. Pettis considering Aldo’s longtime manager Andre Pederneiras recently stated they wanted a catchweight bout at 150 pounds with no belt on the line.

That serves as an immediate wrench in the gears of a potential superfight since Pettis‘ camp only wants Aldo at 155 or they’ll move on to the next contender, according to Damon Martin of Fox Sports.

So what does that mean for Mendes and Swanson, a pair of fighters who met back in 2010 with “Money” winning by decision?

Simply put, they’re going to have to play the waiting game. Mendes has already had to wait his turn to fight Aldo again since he lost to the champ by first-round knockout at UFC 142, so what’s a few more months?

As for Swanson, who is recovering from elbow surgery, more vacation days may be exactly what the doctor ordered.

In any case, whether it’s Aldo vs. Pettis, Aldo vs. Mendes, Mendes vs. Swanson or Pettis vs. Brock Lesnar, 2014 is destined to be the “Year of the Little Guys.”

 

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