Jose
Aldo once again has T.J.
Dillashaw in his sights following another impressive victory in
the bantamweight division.
The former featherweight king earned his third consecutive triumph
at 135 pounds in the UFC
on ESPN 31 headliner, taking a five-round verdict over Rob Font at the
UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Despite a reputation for
fading in longer fights, Aldo held up for 25 hard-fought minutes
against a surging contender. Aldo did not attend Saturday’s
post-fight press conference due to being transported to a hosptial
for precautionary reasons, but he did share his thoughts on his
performance — which featured a blend of powerful striking and
timely grappling — during an interview in the Octagon.
“Everyone thinks I can only go three rounds but I proved I can do
five and I want to be a champion of this division and I’m still
working for that,” Aldo said. “We’ve been talking about this, to
become a complete MMA fighter. So yes, I’m going to be standing up
and when it goes to the ground I’m going to work down there. This
is the new Aldo you’re seeing.”
Just as he did following a victory over Pedro
Munhoz at UFC 265 earlier this year, Aldo called out the former
bantamweight champion. With a Petr
Yan–Aljamain
Sterling rematch for bantamweight gold still likely, Aldo vs.
Dillashaw could be an interesting No. 1 contender’s bout.
“Of course I want to fight for the title but we don’t know what’s
going to happen with that,” Aldo said. “Dillashaw’s right there, so
I want to fight Dillashaw. That would be the best opponent
next.”