After a rough beginning, Jose Aldo has
found his stride in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s
bantamweight division.
The former UFC and WEC featherweight champion earned his second
consecutive triumph at 135 pounds, as he showcased his skilled
hands in a three-round verdict against Pedro
Munhoz in the UFC 265 co-main event at the Toyota Center in
Houston on Saturday night. The Nova Uniao star moved to the new
weight class in late 2019 and began his bantamweight tenure with
losses to Marlon
Moraes and Petr Yan.
Since then, Aldo has authored back-to-back decision victories over
Munhoz and Marlon Vera
at 135 pounds to regain some much-needed momentum. The soon-to-be
35-year-old Brazilian credits some tweaks to his training for his
performance at UFC 265.
“After I lost a fight, I felt I needed to incorporate more things
into my repertoire and that’s how I got into Navy-sponsored boxing
in Brazil,” Aldo said. “I feel that’s how it made better my punches
and obviously everything upper, but I’m never gonna forget the
kicks.”
Though Aldo landed a few devastating leg kicks against Munhoz, he
was at a 37-to-8 disadvantage in that category, according to
UFCStats.com. That said, Aldo was precise and powerful with his
punches, as he outlanded Munhoz 74 to 35 in significant strikes to
the head and 32 to 3 in significant strikes to the body. Despite
those figures, Aldo was unable to put his adversary away.
“[Munhoz is a] great fighter and I understood it was going to be a
tough fight and a brawl pretty much,” Aldo said. “I knew this was
going to happen. It wasn’t frustrating [that I couldn’t finish
him]. I knew it was going to happen.”
Because of the reputation he built as one of the sport’s greatest
featherweights, Aldo doesn’t have difficulty securing marquee
matchups. Case in point: he received a bantamweight title shot
without a single 135-pound victory to his credit. This time, Aldo
is calling his own shot and he has a fellow former champion in his
sights.
“It would be great for me to fight with [T.J.] Dillashaw,” he said.
“Hopefully by December. I think it would be a great fight and
that’s what we expect. That’s what I’m expecting right now.”