Jose Aldo defended his featherweight crown for the eighth time, including his WEC title defenses, at UFC 169.
The dominant decision victory over Ricardo Lamas pushes his overall record to 24-1, and his UFC record to 6-0. The longtime featherweight cham…
Jose Aldo defended his featherweight crown for the eighth time, including his WEC title defenses, at UFC 169.
The dominant decision victory over Ricardo Lamas pushes his overall record to 24-1, and his UFC record to 6-0. The longtime featherweight champion currently sits at No. 2 on the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings, but should he be No. 1?
Pound-for-pound rankings began in combat sports to give the lesser weights more notoriety and to judge based purely on skill. If you took away all of the physical advantages (height, weight, reach, etc.) who would be the best?
That is why Aldo is still underrated, and should be considered the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world today.
UFC President Dana White doesn’t believe so. At the UFC 169 post-fight press conference he was critical of Aldo. White believes that Aldo lays back. However, Aldo has finishes in two of his last four title defenses, including a first round KO over No. 1-ranked Chad Mendes.
Aldo does let it go inside the cage, but only when the opportunities present themselves. Aldo has some of the best killer instincts in the game, and he uses them wisely. That is why he is the champion.
When it comes to placing Aldo above UFC light heavyweight champion Jones for the top pound-for-pound spot, you have to look at their skills and how they have competed in their division.
These two are in the UFC record books. Jones leads the all-time takedown defense stat with 95.8% defense, but he truly has not been tested as often as Aldo has been in this area. Aldo still checks in at 88.9% takedown defense. They are practically even here.
Jones is ranked No. 7 in strike differential with 2.26, and Aldo has the No. 6 strike defense (72.1%).
Those are just stats. They don’t tell the whole story.
Who is the better striker? Aldo. Who has better wrestling? Jones. Who is the better ground technician? Aldo.
If these two were the same size and had all of the same measurables, the betting line would favor Aldo. Jones is still developing his striking and ground game. His length and creativity are what make him so devastating.
This is no slight to Jones. He is absolutely one of the world’s best fighters, but when you look at how they have done in their division it is Aldo’s reign that is more impressive.
Jones has defended the title six times. However, only four of those six were against fighters ranked No. 5 or better, and rarely did he take on the top contender. Currently, he has only faced two of the Top Five (based on the UFC’s official rankings) in his division.
Aldo? He has currently defeated each fighter that is ranked in the Top Five of his division. Based on ranking alone, he has defended the title against top-ranked competition time and again. Rarely has he defended against a fighter outside of the Top Five.
Aldo is more technically sound than Jones, Aldo has done more work in his division, and Aldo deserves to be recognized as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the sport today.
Urijah Faber was once the face of the 145-pound division and helped the division grow out of the WEC dark ages.
He’s since found success in the cage at bantamweight, but a return to the featherweight division may be in the cards for Faber’s future. Blo…
Urijah Faber was once the face of the 145-pound division and helped the division grow out of the WEC dark ages.
He’s since found success in the cage at bantamweight, but a return to the featherweight division may be in the cards for Faber’s future. Bloody Elbow has the quotes from Faber’s post-fight press conference at UFC 169.
“I am sick of the weight cut, but I was also sick of fighting bigger guys at 145,” Faber said. “I would like to do some fights that are interesting. I feel like I am getting better, my body feels great. I don’t know, I don’t want to go up to 145 permanently, but if there’s something people want to see I might do that.”
It wouldn’t be a bad move for Faber, who has lost UFC bantamweight title shots against both RenanBarao (twice) and Dominick Cruz. It’s hard to imagine a scenario where Faber will earn another UFC title shot in the near future even if Barao drops the belt.
Faber sports a 30-7 record and has been competing since 2003. He was also knocked out for the first time since 2008 when Mike Brown caught him at WEC 36.
That’s a long track record, and as everyone knows cutting weight doesn’t get any easier as fighters age. Faber has never been one to be out of shape, but nobody likes having to cut weight.
If he can avoid cutting down on the calories and make some money in the process, why wouldn’t he go with it?
There are plenty of fresh matchups for Faber since he’s been out of the division for so long, and it provides another avenue for the UFC to feature him on upcoming cards. The company is desperately needing some star power to draw people in, and it’s clear Faber is one of the most popular fighters on the roster.
I know the title of this article has likely already branded me as a “UFC hater” in many of your eyes and invalidated whatever points of merit I may make, but if the MMA media is so insistent on clinging to Dana White’s every word, there needs to be a system of checks and balances in order here.
Following last weekend’s lackluster-at-best UFC 169, the UFC President was understandably frustrated. With a “10-decision, record-breaking catastrophe” of a card topped off by a controversial title fight in the books, it would be hard to fault White for dismissing a few questions that night in the fear of saying something stupid or potentially damaging about one of his employees, especially given how poorly his burial of Georges St. Pierre following UFC 167 was received.
If only White had the impulse control.
Because rather than hang back and let some of the fighters themselves explain why the fights were so underwhelming, White decided to shame two of the fighters on the card LEAST deserving of criticism: Alistair Overeem and Jose Aldo.
First, he told FS1 that Overeem had “a crappy performance” in what was “not a great night for Alistair.” Alistair Overeem, who had just outworked, outgrappled, and outstruck a former UFC champion 139 to 5, had a “crappy performance.” One-hundred thirty-nine to five.
Of course Overeem’s callout of Brock Lesnar was stupid and pointless. Of course it was. But White’s criticism of Overeem’s damn near flawless victory was far more unwarranted than some harmless little threat. It was lunacy.
(Just another day in the life of boring, gunshy Jose Aldo. Photo via Getty)
I know the title of this article has likely already branded me as a “UFC hater” in many of your eyes and invalidated whatever points of merit I may make, but if the MMA media is so insistent on clinging to Dana White’s every word, there needs to be a system of checks and balances in order here.
Following last weekend’s lackluster-at-best UFC 169, the UFC President was understandably frustrated. With a “10-decision, record-breaking catastrophe” of a card topped off by a controversial title fight in the books, it would be hard to fault White for dismissing a few questions that night in the fear of saying something stupid or potentially damaging about one of his employees, especially given how poorly his burial of Georges St. Pierre following UFC 167 was received.
If only White had the impulse control.
Because rather than hang back and let some of the fighters themselves explain why the fights were so underwhelming, White decided to shame two of the fighters on the card LEAST deserving of criticism: Alistair Overeem and Jose Aldo.
First, he told FS1 that Overeem had “a crappy performance” in what was “not a great night for Alistair.” Alistair Overeem, who had just outworked, outgrappled, and outstruck a former UFC champion 139 to 5, had a “crappy performance.” One-hundred thirty-nine to five.
Of course Overeem’s callout of Brock Lesnar was stupid and pointless. Of course it was. But White’s criticism of Overeem’s damn near flawless victory was far more unwarranted than some harmless little threat. It was lunacy.
Let us not forget that these comments came just weeks after White praised Bobby Voelker‘s ability to continuously walk face first into punches as “trying to win.” I respect Voelker as much as the next guy, but when did the ability to lose triumphantly become more worthy of praise than the ability to win…triumphantly? Dominantly? Proficiently? If White thought Overeem’s performance was “crappy,” then he must have been asleep during a few of St. Pierre and Ben Henderson‘s title defenses to say the least.
Overeem had dropped his past two fights by KO and was potentially fighting for his job against an incredibly dangerous opponent; a former champ. He put said former champ’s face through a meat grinder without barely breaking a sweat, and he’s boring now? Is anyone seeing the disconnect here?
In the final seconds of his fight with Frank Mir, you could practically see the moment when Overeem decided to spare the former champ (a fact that bears repeating) from his second consecutive KO loss. Overeem should be lauded for his restraint and respect for a man who, like himself, has suffered far too many concussions in his career, not attacked for his ability to gameplan. Who in the hell buries their fighters like this, even in victory?
Of course, once you hear White’s criticism of Jose Aldo, you should have a pretty clear understanding as to where his head is at these days (via ESPN):
The thing about Jose Aldo that drives me crazy is the kid has all the talent in the world. He’s explosive, fast. He can do anything but he just lays back and doesn’t let anything go.
When you talk about being the pound-for-pound best in the world, you can’t go five rounds with guys that it looks like you can defeat them in the second round. That’s what Aldo has a habit of doing.
Rant…incoming…can’t..stop..self…
Look, I get that Aldo hasn’t flying-kneed anyones face off lately (and did seem a bit hesitant in his fight with Lamas. A bit.) but “doesn’t let anything go? THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT.
Aldo’s won 2 out of his past 4 fights by TKO for Christ’s sake. He’s consistently fought the elite of the division. Is White forgetting that Aldo and Chan Sung Jung broke each other to shit by the end of their fight? Or that he is the only man to ever defeat, let alone finish Chad Mendes (in spectacular fashion, I might add)? Aldo couldn’t finish Edgar, but who the hell can? The same goes for KenFlo to a lesser degree. And Lamas could only last two rounds with Aldo? LET’S SEE YOU EAT THAT MANY LEG KICKS WITHOUT EVEN FLINCHING, ASSHOLE.
The most infuriating thing about all of this is that White has been throwing around “pound for pound” term so much lately that it has all but lost the mostly pointless meaning it had in the first place. Basically, he’s done to “pound for pound” what Joe Rogan has done to the phrase “THIS GUY IS A BEAST” (which he literally used to describe Aldo and Lamas, back-to-back, at UFC 169). He thinks that he can just assign this ridiculous status to anyone he wants, whenever he wants, and people will care what his self-serving opinion on the matter is and purchase accordingly. The MMA media will, that’s for sure.
What I’m saying is, there are moments when White seems like the most level-headed, down to earth president of a billion dollar corporation you’d ever meet, and there are moments when he sounds like a megalomaniac with the candor of a wilfully dense message board troll. I’ll let you decide which category his recent statements fall into.
Regardless of how White felt about the fights that went down last weekend, or GSP’s decision to step away from the sport, or Randy Couture, etc., he needs to first realize that his fighters have sacrificed blood, sweat and years off their lives for him. They are warriors who have made him who he is today, and vice versa, and they need to be treated with the proper respect. I know it sounds hypocritical coming from your #1 source for fighter bashing and UFC h8errade, but even us cynics can recognize when a criticism is unnecessary. At a certain point, people are going to realize that the common denominator between the UFC and all of its bitter, estranged former employees is White himself, and it’s because of shit like this.
“The problem I have with all this is that my gym and her training partner got put on blast with no facts,” said Pena’s coach, Rick Little, when dealing with the backlash of White’s comments. But we’re sure The Baldfather felt it necessary to publicly bash someone (actually, an entire camp) before getting his facts straight regarding an incident he was hundreds of miles away from when it happened. It’s what they call Spike Lee-ing in the film industry.
Renan Barao destroyed Urijah Faber at UFC 169.
In under five minutes, Barao rocked Faber again and again, eventually forcing referee Herb Dean’s hand after a knockdown left Faber turtled, defenseless and susceptible to a series of hammerfists.&nb…
In under five minutes, Barao rocked Faber again and again, eventually forcing referee Herb Dean’s hand after a knockdown left Faber turtled, defenseless and susceptible to a series of hammerfists.
Faber’s bid at the UFC bantamweight title ended in defeat, but the loss was not without controversy.
In the post-fight press conference, Faber expressed that he was completely conscious and aware of what was happening around him. He knew Dean needed him to defend himself, so he gave a thumbs-up gesture to signify his state of affairs.
Backing Faber’s words, a replay clearly showed his thumbs up, and he immediately protested the stoppage. He did not appear badly dazed or hurt.
None of that mattered. The fight was stopped, and that should bother you.
Yes, Barao was dominating the bout. Yes, Barao looked phenomenal.
And, yes, Barao already obliterated Faber once before for a full 25 minutes.
But justifying a poor stoppage because “that guy would have won, anyway” is fallacious.
MMA is not a game built on conjecture and “ifs.” How many times do “experts” routinely blow fight predictions? How many times have you watched a fight where one man looked in total command, only to have his opponent snatch victory from the fists, knees and shins of defeat?
The latter happened literally three fights before Barao vs. Faber 2 at UFC 169, when Abel Trujillo came back from the dead to knock out Jamie Varner with a devastating counter right hook (gif courtesy of Zombie Prophet, @ZProphet_MMA).
To rob a fighter of a chance at a comeback can be a fatal error in MMA, and it can directly alter the way the bout would should have ended.
Let me clarify: I’m not against referee stoppages at all. I don’t have to see a fighter faceplant to the canvas to realize a fight needed to be stopped.
I do have a problem, however, when a fighter is defending himself by keeping his off hand high while holding on to a single leg and giving a thumbs up.
I have a problem when the fighter in question is noted for his ability to absorb punishment and move forward.
“It’s unfortunate, being a guy that’s very tough and prides myself on that in a big show like the one that we had today, where I don’t get to fight until the bitter end,” Faber said in the UFC 169 post-fight press conference. “If they’re asking me to defend myself, I’m already defending myself, I have to do something, so I put my thumb up, but, ya know…It is what it is.”
Faber was not done against Barao at UFC 169. I’m not trying to say that he was definitely going to win that fight.
But he did deserve the chance to mount a comeback, and Dean—who I still feel is one of the best referees in the game, for the record—robbed him of that.
Don’t justify a terrible decision because you assume a particular end as an inevitability.
If you still want to, however, Pat Barry, Chael Sonnen, Pete Sell, Jamie Varner and countless others are happy to provide some notes for help you change your mind.
It took UFC President Dana White all of about four minutes on Saturday to negotiate terms for a superfight between featherweight champion Jose Aldo and lightweight champ Anthony Pettis.
With the Octagon still warm from his shellacking of Ricardo Lamas …
It took UFC President Dana White all of about four minutes on Saturday to negotiate terms for a superfight between featherweight champion Jose Aldo and lightweight champ Anthony Pettis.
With the Octagon still warm from his shellacking of Ricardo Lamas at UFC 169, Aldo told the first reporter to question him at the post-fight press conference that he wanted a bout with Pettis.
Aldo checked with White, White checked with Aldo—the process only slowed because the two men were working through Aldo’s interpreter—and it was done. There was no need to ask Pettis, who had confirmed his interest earlier in the evening on social media.
“Sounds like we’ve got a fight,” White said during the official press conference feed on UFC’s YouTube account. “There you go. That was easy.”
It sure was.
Maybe a little bit too easy.
Granted, Aldo vs. Pettis is a tantalizing prize for fans, fighters and UFC brass alike.
After watching Aldo breeze past Lamas in overwhelming but uninspired fashion last weekend, conventional wisdom now says lightweight is the place for him. There will be bigger challenges and bigger paydays at 155 pounds and moving up to face Pettis seems far more interesting—and profitable—than rematches against Chad Mendes or Cub Swanson.
Despite all the smiles and the easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy fashion in which this superfight appeared to fall into our laps, however, it’s far from a done deal.
In vacating his title to move up, Aldo would be risking an awful lot, all for a fight that may not even come off as scheduled.
There is still the small matter of Pettis’ health to clear up, after all.
The 27-year-old lightweight kingpin has been out of action since mid-November rehabbing a knee injury and the UFC is said to be targeting early July for his next fight. Pettisdeclared to MMAJunkie.com that he’ll be ready, but the fight company’s own doctor has raised significant doubts.
“I would pray for him,” orthopedic surgeon Robert Klapper said on UFC Tonight (h/t MMAFighting.com) a couple of weeks ago. “Coming back in July? That’s really optimistic.”
It’s possible the UFC knows something the public doesn’t about Pettis’ recovery, but it still feels like a roll of the dice for Aldo. It’d be a shame for him to give up his title, make the move to lightweight and then discover he’d have to wait longer than expected for the champion to get right.
Or, worse yet, accept another opponent.
Aldo would be the first champion of the Zuffa era to willingly vacate his belt in order to chase another title within the organization. Let’s not underestimate the perils inherent in a move like that.
Former heavyweight champion BasRutten tried to do something similar back in 1999. Rutten wanted to move down to fight Frank Shamrock in what was then called the “middleweight” division. Unfortunately, that superfight never happened after Rutten suffered multiple injuries while still in training.
As a result, he was forced to vacate the UFC title and retire from the sport. He never fought in the Octagon again, though he returned for a one-off bout in the short-lived WFA organization in 2006.
Aldo is not in the same position as El Guapo—who was already in his mid-30s in ’99—but Rutten serves as a cautionary tale nonetheless.
The five months between now and July are an eternity in the fast-paced and unpredictable world of MMA. While we wait, any number of things could come along and scuttle the superfight, potentially leaving Aldo holding an empty bag.
There would be no take-backs either. The peanut gallery is already at work advocating a bout between Mendes and Swanson to fill his shoes at featherweight.
What would Aldo do if Pettis’ return is delayed? What if erstwhile No. 1 contender T.J. Grant is suddenly cleared by doctors to return from his concussion? What if Aldo himself—no stranger to the injured reserve—suffers an injury and has to pull out of the fight?
All of this is to say nothing of the possibility that Aldo moves up, loses to Pettis and must immediately go back down to reclaim what rightfully belongs to him.
If any of the above happens, we might end up wondering what all this superfight hysteria was about in the first place.
So far, Aldo has managed to fight his way past every obstacle he’s encountered during his 25-fight career. Here’s hoping his move to 155 pounds is no different.
We’d hate to see injury or unforeseen delays leave him as a champion without a country or title.
Featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo has ascended mixed martial art’s short list of superior champions by racking off six-straight UFC title defenses.
He has done so by tapping into ungodly athleticism, sensational preparation and the ability to kick throug…
Featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo has ascended mixed martial art’s short list of superior champions by racking off six-straight UFC title defenses.
He has done so by tapping into ungodly athleticism, sensational preparation and the ability to kick through a cement wall.
But in a time when international stardom and fan appreciation often revolves around finishing, Aldo has not lived up to his billing. He has only finished two of his six Octagon appearances, knocking out Chad Mendes with one second left in the first round at UFC 142 and finishing an injured Chan Sung Jung in the fourth round at UFC 163 last year.
Now while Aldo maintains tremendous popularity and promotional potential in the Brazilian market, his inconsistency to finish top contenders may be the leading factor in holding him back here in the States. Not to mention his case for pound-for-pound best.
“The thing about Jose Aldo that drives me crazy is the kid has all the talent in the world,” said Dana White in a recent interview with Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com. “He’s explosive, fast. He can do anything but he just lays back and doesn’t let anything go.”
White’s comment surfaced following this past Saturday’s UFC 169throwdown in Newark, in which Aldo seemingly coasted to a unanimous decision over the very dangerous Ricardo Lamas. He was simply too quick and too explosive on his feet for “The Bully” to do any significant damage, albeit for last-minute ground-and-pound.
In any case, Aldo remained untouchable opposite an opponent who looked like he could finally give the tenured champion a run for his money. But do rather lack-luster decisions like that hurt a champion’s case for pound-for-pound best, especially when he’s capable of finishing any fight early?
It depends. Aldo is so talented and has done so many awe-inspiring things in the past that fans tend to expect greatness at every turn. And that is truly unfair.
“When you talk about being the pound-for-pound best in the world, you can’t go five rounds with guys that it looks like you can defeat them in the second round,” added White. “That’s what Aldo has a habit of doing.”
Aldo will have a chance to finish one of the most athletic strikers in the sport if a looming superfight opposite UFC lightweight prince Anthony Pettis is finalized. It’s a fight that will leave any fan drooling for days.
Jose Aldo defended his featherweight crown for the eighth time, including his WEC title defenses, at UFC 169.
