Everyone knew Jose Aldo was a bad man.

On Saturday, he just confirmed it once again.

The UFC Featherweight Champion and top 5 pound-for-pound fighter in the world put another highlight reel KO on his resume at UFC 142, finishing Chad Mendes with 1 second left in the first round thanks to a knee to the head.

Aldo (21-1) had control of the fight from the start, as he landed a number of leg kicks that seemed to bother Mendes. The contender attempted a number of takedowns, but Aldo managed to escape them all. As the opening round winded down, Aldo landed a big knee during the exchange and followed up with two big right hands on the ground that put Mendes out cold.

Following the win, the champion sprinted into the raucous Brazilian crowd, nearly causing a riot. But, disaster was averted.

Now, the big question for Aldo is what is next, as he has wiped out the 145-pound division and left no legit contenders.

In the co-main event, another local hero, Vitor Belfort, scored a first round win over Anthony Johnson by rear-naked choke.

Johnson came in 12 pounds overweight on Friday, but it didn’t seem to hurt Belfort and only left Johnson fatigued late in the first round.

With Johnson worn down, Belfort found his striking range and sent Johnson to the ground before taking his back and securing a choke late in the opening round.

The other highlight of the night had Edson Barboza putting his stamp on the lightweight division by delivering a wheel kick KO against Terry Etim.

The two had a very competitive first two rounds, but with two minute to go in the final round, Barboza unleashed a picture-perfect wheel kick that knocked Etim out cold on contact.

Barboza has now thrust himself into the top 10 of the division and looks to be a real threat in the 155-pound weight class.

For full results for UFC 142, check out the jump.

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Frankie Edgar was determined to prove he could beat Gray Maynard.

On Saturday night, despite all the signs pointing that he would be unable to do so, Edgar did just that, knocking out the challenger in the fourth round to retain his UFC Lightweight Championship in the main event of UFC 136.

After fighting to a 5-round draw back at UFC 125 last January, Saturday’s bout had almost an identical start. Maynard caught Edgar with a big uppercut in the middle of the first round and pummeled the champion to a near stoppage.

However, Edgar managed to stay conscious and mobile, and survived the round despite losing it 10-8 on most cards.

After a break between rounds, Edgar seemed to get his stamina back and began working his game. He used his quickness to out-box Maynard and avoid another big punch, while Maynard looked flat on his feet and simply looking for the one-punch victory.

Come the fourth round, Edgar landed a big cross that dropped Maynard. The challenger got to his feet but ate a series of punches that eventually left him face flat in the canvas.

The win solidifies Edgar as a true star in the sport and he can finally cross Maynard off his list of opponents.

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An injury has forced UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo out of a planned late-summer bout with Chad Mendes writes HeavyMMA.com.

UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo has suffered an injury and has been forced to withdraw from a planned late-summer bout with Chad Mendes.

Multiple sources close to the fight confirmed the news with HeavyMMA.com on Monday afternoon.

Aldo’s injury is believed to be a minor setback and the featherweight champion will be able to fight by mid-September. Mendes plans on taking a fight instead of waiting for the September title shot.

Aldo last appeared at UFC 129, winning a decision victory over the gutsy Mark Hominick. The undefeated Mendes earned his title shot with a win over Michihiro Omigawa at UFC 126.

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HeavyMMA.com has released their pound for pound rankings for the month of May.

We’ve long hoped to see a fight between Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre. We thought it would be the ultimate super-fight, a way to truly see who the best fighter in the world is while watching both men etch their superb careers even further into the annals of history.

After UFC 129, we’re not really interested in seeing that fight any more. It doesn’t hold the same kind of intrigue, not after you’ve seen St. Pierre struggle with Jake Shields and realize that the much-larger Silva would almost certainly have his way with the current welterweight champion.

Let’s take a look at our pound-for-pound rankings after UFC 129:

1. Anderson Silva
It’s becoming obvious that we’re not going to see Silva face Georges St. Pierre, and that’s fine. We’ve gotten to the point where we’re not sure how well St. Pierre would do in a fight against the much-bigger Silva, anyway. Instead, the pound for pound king will focus his attention on Yushin Okami, who he’ll face in the main event of UFC 134 in August. Okami was the last man to beat him. Sure, it was by disqualification, but you don’t have to put that in the marketing materials.

Check out the rest of the rankings.

According to HeavyMMA.com, all 24 fighters who competed at UFC 129 last weekend have received medical suspensions, including welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre.

Out of the 24 suspensions given out, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and six others earned the lengthiest with 60 day suspensions. The other six include Mark Hominick, who fought featherweight champion Jose Aldo in the evening’s co-main event, Randy Couture, Jason Brilz, Kyle Watson, Charlie Valencia, and Sean Pierson. Hominick and St. Pierre were the only ones out of the seven to avoid being knocked out.

From the evening’s preliminary card, Nate Diaz was given a suspension of 45 days following his loss to Rory MacDonald, while Jake Ellenberger will be out the same amount of time following his knockout victory over Sean Pierson.

UFC 129 took place at the Rogers Centre in Toronto and featured St. Pierre’s welterweight title defense against Jake Shields. In the co-main event of the evening, featherweight title-holder Aldo managed to outpoint Hominick on the judges’ scorecards.

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Spencer Kyte of HeavyMMA.com outlines ten stories that emerged from UFC 129 at Toronto’s Rogers Centre on Saturday night.

LAST NAME EVER. FIRST NAME GREATEST.
Quoting Toronto’s Drake seems fitting in the wake of the UFC’s debut in his backyard, but also because the lyrics ring true for UFC 129; this was the greatest event in UFC history.

Plus, Drake was in the building.

The magnitude of this event will remain the benchmark for the organization for some time. It was the UFC’s first stadium show, and it was a resounding success both inside and outside of the cage.

Each of the first four fights ended with a finish, with Pablo Garza’s opening bout flying triangle choke earning Submission of the Night honors, and John Makdessi replacing Shonie Carter as the man attached to a spectacular spinning back fist knockout inside the Octagon.

When you add the 55,000 exhilarated fans who packed the Rogers Centre with the tremendous layout and outstanding production of the event, it will be hard to top this event. Of course, you can be sure that Dana White and the UFC will try, and after being blown away in Toronto, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them pull it off down the line.

Read the full article.

UFC 129 takes place tonight from the Rogers Centre in Toronto featuring a very exciting card with two title fights.

Here are my picks for each of the five main-card bouts. The PPV begins at 9PM ET.

Also, be sure to check out MMABlitz.com for more UFC 129 coverage and news.

UFC Welterweight Championship – Georges St. Pierre (21-2) vs. Jake Shields (26-4-1) – Shields may be the toughest opponent St. Pierre has faced in a while, but I still see the champion running through him. Shields’ striking is miles behind GSP and Shields’ takedown ability is nothing St. Pierre hasn’t seen before. I see St. Pierre keeping the fight standing and picking Shields apart before finishing him in the fourth round by TKO.

UFC Featherweight Champion – Jose Aldo (18-1) vs. Mark Hominick (20-8) – Aldo is an absolute beast and seems unstoppable. Hominick has very quick and powerful hands, but he has not had to deal with someone that has the leg kicks of Aldo. I see Aldo landing a few leg kicks in the first and throwing Hominick off his strategy. From there, look for the champion to pounce and eventually knock the challenger out in the second round.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Randy Couture (19-10) vs. Lyoto Machida (16-2) – My heart says Couture, but my head says Machida. I think Couture will have a good strategy and look to leave it all in the cage, but Machida has some solid grappling ability and will be too elusive in the striking to allow Couture to really implement his game plan. Give me Machida by decision in Couture’s retirement fight.

Lightweight Bout – Mark Bocek (9-3) vs. Ben Henderson (12-2) – Henderson is making his UFC debut and looking to make a statement against Bocek. I see Henderson controlling the fight on his feet and on the ground as he will be too strong for Bocek in both areas. Henderson is smart enough to stay out of submission attempts by Bocek, and that is all the Canadian really has to offer. Give me Benson by decision.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Vladimir Matyushenko (25-5) vs. Jason Brilz (18-3-1) – This fight should be competitive, but I like Brilz to win by decision. He has a good chin and he is relentless with his pursuit to grapple. I suspect once Brilz gets a hold of Matyushenko, he will be able to consistently get him to the ground and get the win in the judges’ eyes.

HeavyMMA.com updated their pound for pound rankings for the month of March. Where does Jon Jones land after his stunning victory over Shogun Rua?

1. Anderson Silva
We thought Silva’s next challenge would come from Georges St. Pierre, but it appears that won’t be the case. Instead, look for Yushin Okami to finally get his title shot, likely in the main event of UFC 132 in July. Media and fans are already clamoring for Silva to move up a weight class and face Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title. Should it come to fruition, that would easily be the biggest fight of 2012.

2. Georges St. Pierre
St. Pierre will face Jake Shields at UFC 129 next month. There was talk of St. Pierre abdicating the welterweight throne with a win, but that train seems to be leaving the station. Staying at welterweight might be better for St. Pierre’s legacy, and it’s not like the fans will ever tire of seeing him destroy challengers.

3. Jose Aldo
Aldo finally makes his UFC debut next month with a title defense against Mark Hominick. UFC fans will be pleasantly surprised at just how awesome Aldo actually is. Hominick is the best striker Aldo has faced thus far, but he’ll be no match for the Brazilian wunderkind.

Check out the rest of the rankings.

Did Jon Fitch’s performance at UFC 127 drop him in HeavyMMA.com’s latest pound for pound rankings?

1. Anderson Silva
Silva’s playing the waiting game at the moment and won’t have any idea what his future holds until after UFC 129 at the end of April. It might be a few months after that before Silva’s next opponent is even decided, because Georges St. Pierre certainly doesn’t sound too sure about moving up to middleweight any more. Either way, a win by St. Pierre will determine what is next for the reigning middleweight champion.

2. Georges St. Pierre
The Canadian is in the midst of his training camp for UFC 129, putting all of his focus on training for his title defense against Jake Shields. He’ll walk into the cage on that night as a national hero in front of the biggest live crowd in North American mixed martial arts history, but there’s a good chance he loses that fight. Shields is no joke.

3. Jose Aldo
Aldo finally makes the first defense of his UFC featherweight title at UFC 129 against Mark Hominick. Few give Hominick a chance – and for good reason – but the Canadian can probably match Aldo in the striking department. Everything else will probably give him some trouble.

Check out the full rankings.

Jose Aldo remains atop HeavyMMA.com’s Featherweight rankings for the month of February.

The featherweight division remains somewhat stagnant for February. Chad Mendes had a chance to cement himself as the #2 featherweight in the world, but turned in a lackluster performance against Michihiro Omigawa. Jose Aldo and Mark Hominick don’t face off until April, and few of the top ten guys even have fights booked at this point.

Notes: Our rankings are subjective and are weighted heavily in favor of recent performance instead of a career body of work.

1. Jose Aldo
Aldo makes his long-awaited UFC debut (as champion, no less) when he takes on Mark Hominick at UFC 129 in Toronto. There will be 55,000 people in the stadium when Aldo takes to the cage; that’s pretty good exposure for a guy you’re wanting to push as one of the best fighters in the world. Everybody wants to talk about Hominick’s striking and how good it is, but Aldo should dispatch him with ease. Aldo’s biggest fight this year could come in the form of Kenny Florian, who dropped to featherweight and hopes to win one big fight and then get his title shot.

Read the full article.