Jose Aldo decisions Chad Mendes at UFC 179

MANILA, Philippines – Jose Aldo successfully defended the featherweight championship for the 7th time by outpointing Chad Mendes in their five-round title rematch at UFC 179 on Sunday, October 26 (PH time) at the Maracanazinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

All three judges unanimously scored 49-46 for Aldo, who has rattled off 18-straight victories since yielding to fellow Brazilian Luciano Azevedo in November 2005 under the Jungle Fight promotion.

Although Aldo relied on accurate and high-velocity shots to retain the UFC featherweight belt, Mendes made him work for it as the 29-year-old American pushed a brutal pace in the opening salvo.

Mendes, who was knocked out by Aldo two years ago in their first meeting, showed himself to be a completely different challenge the second time around, swarming Aldo with power punches and keeping him on his heels with rapid-fire combinations.

The Team Alpha Male standout was able to drop his Brazilian counterpart with a clean left hook, but Aldo returned the favor by throwing his own version of a left hook to slump Mendes.

Aldo had the challenger on wobbly legs at the end of the frame, landing a scorching right hand after the bell.

Despite the blow’s blatant illegality, Aldo was not warned or penalized a point, but it would not be the only instance that the bout had to be stopped and restarted due to a foul.

Mendes accidentally hit Aldo’s groin courtesy of a missed knee strike in the second stanza, while in the third period, the champion was poked on the eye that forced referee Marc Goddard to issue a stern warning.

Midway through the third round, Mendes landed a counter uppercut that stunned Aldo, but the latter clobbered with an overhand right near the left temple that staggered his opponent.

Mendes had his best round in the fourth, where he opened up a cut over Aldo’s left eye and threw several winging right hands.

Aldo did not appear to be bothered by the gory gash as the championship clash reached the fifth and final round, but Mendes blindsided his foe by scoring a takedown.

The 5-foot-7 “Scarface” worked in a seated position along the fence and eventually managed to get back to his feet.

Aldo regained his wits in the dying minutes as he delivered punishing blows to conclude his campaign on a positive note.

With the second triumph over Mendes, Aldo improves his prizefighting record to 25-1 and moves into a tie for third all-time in consecutive title defenses.

“I think every fight is the toughest fight of my career. I think I deserved to win. He hit me a few times but I hit him a lot more. But congratulations to Chad Mendes. I have respect for him, his whole team, and his family. Inside [the cage], it is a rivalry, but outside we’re friends,” Aldo said in his post-fight interview.

On the other hand, Mendes snaps his five-fight winning streak and downgrades his win-loss card to 16-2. – Rappler.com