Filed under: UFC, NewsThe UFC 142 fight card is designed to get the fans in Rio de Janeiro worked up to support the local guys, with eight fights featuring Brazilians against foreigners, including local fan favorites taking on American challengers in t…
The UFC 142 fight card is designed to get the fans in Rio de Janeiro worked up to support the local guys, with eight fights featuring Brazilians against foreigners, including local fan favorites taking on American challengers in the main event and co-main event.
But those two Americans, Chad Mendes and Anthony Johnson, said on Thursday morning at the pre-fight press conference in Rio that they’ve had purely positive experiences from the Brazilian fans they’ve met, and they’re being treated more like guests than rivals.
“Brazil has just been great,” Johnson said. “The fans have been great. I’m speechless, really, about this country. I had heard good stories and bad stories about this country but so far all I’ve experienced is great things, so thank you, Brazil.”
Mendes described the open workout on Wednesday in front of Brazilian fans on a Rio beach as one of the best experiences of his life, and he said that while he knows his opponent, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, will have a lot of fans in the HSBC Arena, he doesn’t worry about what the fans might say.
“I’m probably going to get booed,” Mendes said. “It’s here in Jose’s backyard and he’s the champion. But other than boos, I can’t speak Portugeuse so I can’t understand what anyone’s saying anyway. I’m going to be in the zone and ready to get in there and do what I do.”
Mendes said being away from home hasn’t diminished his confidence.
“I feel great,” Mendes said. “I’m basically treating this like it’s any other fight, whether it’s in Brazil or it’s in the United States. I have tunnel vision, I have that goal of winning that belt. That’s something I’ve trained for and it’s all I’m thinking about.”
And Johnson said he views the opportunity to step into the Octagon with Belfort as a big step in his career.
“I’m looking forward to the fight,” Johnson said. “I can’t wait. I definitely can’t wait.”
Filed under: UFCAt the UFC 142 pre-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White and the top fighters taking part in UFC 142 on Saturday night will meet the Brazilian media on Thursday morning, and we’ll carry the live video here at MMAFighting.com….
At the UFC 142 pre-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White and the top fighters taking part in UFC 142 on Saturday night will meet the Brazilian media on Thursday morning, and we’ll carry the live video here at MMAFighting.com.
In the main event, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will take on the undefeated Chad Mendes. The co-main event features Vitor Belfort, one of the most popular fighters among the Brazilian fans, taking on Anthony Johnson.
The press conference begins at 10 AM ET and the video is below.
Filed under: UFCThe UFC’s return to Brazil this Saturday is highlighted by Jose Aldo putting his featherweight title on the line against Chad Mendes and Vitor Belfort facing fellow heavy-hitter Anthony Johnson in a middleweight showdown.
The UFC‘s return to Brazil this Saturday is highlighted by Jose Aldo putting his featherweight title on the line against Chad Mendes and Vitor Belfort facing fellow heavy-hitter Anthony Johnson in a middleweight showdown.
And if you want to get caught up on these two UFC 142 fights, the UFC has released online the Countdown to UFC Rio show. Check out the videos below.
Part 1: Aldo vs. Mendes
As Jose Aldo gets set to defend the UFC featherweight title on home soil against Chad Mendes this weekend, the Brazilian has opened up about his previous training sessions with UFC lightweight contender Gray Maynard.Maynard was called upon to emulate M…
As Jose Aldo gets set to defend the UFC featherweight title on home soil against Chad Mendes this weekend, the Brazilian has opened up about his previous training sessions with UFC lightweight contender Gray Maynard.
Maynard was called upon to emulate Mendes’ wrestling skills and help prepare Aldo for his upcoming title bout, which is scheduled to headline the main card on Saturday night.
Aldo revealed that Maynard had previously helped the 145 lb. champion when he made his second title defense against Kenny Florian.
The video clip shows Maynard and Aldo sharing their thoughts on the current training camp as well as sparring and grappling sessions between the two competitors.
This will be Aldo’s third title defense while competing under the UFC and his fifth consecutive title defense overall. Since the WEC merged with the UFC last year, Aldo has emerged as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in mixed martial arts, and he is currently 2-0 inside the Octagon.
UFC 142 is this weekend, live from the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.
UFC 142 is this weekend, and many fans are arguing over who will win between Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes. Luckily, the people behind UFC Undisputed 3 have released another prediction to help settle the argument. UFC Undisputed 3 ran 25 AI simulated match…
UFC Undisputed 3 ran 25 AI simulated matches and some of the results were quite lopsided.
Surprisingly (to me at least), Mendes won the first round 80 percent of the time. This comes as a surprise as most analysts predict Aldo to come out strong in the opening frame and has shown the tendency to fade in later rounds.
Mendes also had success with his takedowns during the simulation, achieving a takedown on 72 percent of his attempts. If Mark Hominick can manage to wrestle Aldo to the ground, Mendes should have no issues either.
Once on the ground, Aldo attempted 48 submissions throughout the simulations, but only won via submission once. This is one of the question marks in this bout.
Mendes hasn’t face a lot of submission attempts in his career but was able to stifle Rani Yahya’s BJJ game in their match.
On the feet, Aldo landed approximately 50 percent more strikes than Mendes. That number is likely to be a little higher as Aldo’s striking is deadly while Mendes is no doubt a capable standup fighter, but would much rather make this into a wrestling match.
All in all, Aldo won 14 of the 25 simulations.
What does this mean?
It means this fight is likely a lot closer than what some people think it is. Aldo has looked vulnerable in his two UFC appearances and Mendes is no joke at 145 pounds.
Can Aldo stop the furious takedown attempts and keep his belt? Or will Mendes wrestle his way to a victory and take the title from the Brazilian?
“Crash Course” is a series of articles designed to give readers a quick rundown on all the relevant information they need to know heading into an upcoming major MMA event. Everything from why you should watch, what you should expect i…
“Crash Course” is a series of articles designed to give readers a quick rundown on all the relevant information they need to know heading into an upcoming major MMA event. Everything from why you should watch, what you should expect in the co-main and main event, and even where and when you can find it on TV is all covered in detail. So let’s get right to it with today’s edition, featuring UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes.
The Event: UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes, currently scheduled for January 14, 2012 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Two free preliminary cards are scheduled to air on the UFC’s Facebook page starting at 7:00 PM ET. An additional four free preliminary fights are scheduled to air on the FX network starting at 8:00 PM ET. The five-fight main card is scheduled to air live on Pay-Per-View starting at 10:00 PM ET.
Why You Should Care: This is the first major UFC event of the year, and much like the UFC’s last trip to Brazil, this card is loaded with some of the UFC’s top Brazilian stars. You’ve got champions, hungry upstarts, and thrilling veterans. Even better, all of those fighters have been put into matches that make sense and look very exciting on paper, with a high potential of several “can’t-miss” moments.
What to Look Forward to in the Main Event: I think it’s a fair criticism to say that Jose Aldo has yet to generate the same level of fear and hype in the UFC as he did in the WEC, where many thought he was untouchable and the future of the division. But Aldo is still a champion, and he’s facing a tough threat in the unbeaten Chad Mendes. Will the chinks that have recently appeared in Aldo’s armor lead to Mendes realizing his full potential, or will Aldo take the experience he’s gained from a slew of tough, top UFC competition and restore his status as a walking wrecking ball? There’s only one way to find out.
What to Look Forward to in the Co-Main Event: For quite some time I’ve been saying that Anthony Johnson could make middleweight easily and should in fact move up before his massive weight cut catches up to him and begins affecting both his performance and his health. Johnson will be facing a very tough challenge in Vitor Belfort, who aside from his loss to Anderson Silva has looked absolutely amazing in his latest UFC run. It’s a classic “prospect vs. veteran” match-up, featuring one of the UFC’s hottest prospects going up against one of the UFC’s most dangerous veterans.
Why You Should Watch This Card: The main event should be a back-and-forth war, and the co-main event has an amazing amount of potential. You’ve also got a total of six free fights if you’re into prelim bouts, and with the quality of the UFC’s prelims lately… you need to be into prelim bouts. The Pay-Per-View card, the FX card, and the Facebook card all boast some of the UFC’s top Brazilian talent: from Rousimar Palhares to Gabriel Gonzaga to Erick Silva and more.
Why You Shouldn’t Watch This Card: It’s pretty clear that the UFC is banking on filling this card with Brazilian fighters as a way to get fans to overlook the fact that this isn’t exactly a stacked card. Jose Aldo isn’t really a draw yet because he hasn’t been smashing people the way he did back in the WEC, Anthony Johnson is unproven as a middleweight, and the other Pay-Per-View fights are honestly Fight Night Live-caliber fights.
Closing Thoughts: In the end, I’m excited about this card. It has its fair share of shortcomings, but I think the potential for big KOs and dramatic submissions is high. It may not be the biggest UFC event, but it should be one that’s well worth watching. So definitely count me in.
Oliver Saenz, also known as PdW2kX, is a freelance journalist, opinion columnist, hardcore MMA fan, and lifelong video game nerd. For more news, views, previews, and reviews on all things Mixed Martial Arts as well as video games, be sure to visit FightGamesBlog.net.
The UFC 142 fight card is designed to get the fans in Rio de Janeiro worked up to support the local guys, with eight fights featuring Brazilians against foreigners, including local fan favorites taking on American challengers in the main event and co-main event.
At the UFC 142 pre-fight press conference, 
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