Following the first two rounds of last nights UFC 156 main event, I leaned over to a buddy and said, “Jose Aldo will move up to lightweight after this fight.” However my mood changed at the end of round five. Frankie Edgar rallied to win a couple of rounds in one judges eyes and in a ton of fans, so in that I believe he still has a few tests to prove himself at the 145 pound weight class.
Below is a list from top to bottom of who I think Aldo should face.
1. Ricardo Lamas
Prior to UFC on FOX 6, I wasn’t all that excited about the possibility of Lamas taking on Aldo for his title. However, his battering over top featherweight Erik Koch has given me a new light on the man known as “The Bully”.
Lamas has been on a tear going four in a row and is undefeated inside the Octagon. He has picked up big wins over Cub Swanson, Hatsu Hioki and the aforementioned Koch.
2. Chad Mendes
Mendes was undefeated prior to losing to Jose Aldo back at UFC 142 for the title. The Team Alpha Male product was doing fairly well against the champ, that is until Aldo grabbed the fence to evade a throw. Following the cage grab, Aldo grabbed onto the wrist of Mendes and threw a show-stopping knee which ended the fight.
In an effort to get back into title contention, the California based fighter who is known for his wrestling has finished his past two opponents by knockout. At UFC 148 Mendes dropped Cody McKenzie with a body punch thirty one seconds into the fight. He followed that win up with a KO of Hacran Dias at UFC on FX 6.
He is expected to square off against Manny Gamburyan at UFC 157 later this month, so if he comes out of that fight unscathed then a title fight is definitely a possibility.
3. Chan Sung Jung
After losing two in a row, Jung (also known as The Korean Zombie) has gone on a three fight winning streak. He picked up victories over Leonard Garcia, Mark Hominick and most recently Dustin Poirier. All three of those performances earned him fight bonuses, a submission of the night, a fight of the night and a knockout of the night.
Having not fought since May of last year it is highly unlikely for Jung to get a title shot, but if he picks up a victory in his next he will be inching that much closer.
4. Anthony Pettis
I know I said that initially I wanted Aldo to make the move up to 155 pounds, well it looks like the current number one contender at that weight class wants to make the move down to challenge him for his title.
At the UFC 156 post-fight press conference UFC President Dana White told the media, much to their surprise that Pettis had texted him asking for the match-up.
Pettis came into the UFC guaranteed a lightweight title shot as he was the WEC lightweight champion at the time. However, various reasons had forced them to turn a blind eye on the Roufusport fighter. He has gone 3-1 inside the Octagon since coming over from the WEC, with his most recent victory being a brutal liver kick knockout against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.
Well there you have it, those are my choices for who Jose Aldo should fight next. What are your thoughts? Vote below.
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(Photo by Getty Images)
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