WEC 44: Brown vs. Aldo Commentary

Sadly, this WEC event got popped right in between two UFC events and on a weekday. I missed the event but caught a replay of the main event, which was a featherweight title fight between the challenger Jose Aldo and the champion (and one of the top-ranked pound for pound fighters in the world) Mike Brown. As I expected, it was a great fight, which eventually ended in a TKO victory for Aldo in the 2nd round, and this (along with looking at his previous fights) leads me to believe that Aldo has what it takes to be compared to the likes of Silva, Fedor, GSP, Penn, etc. and be called one of MMA's top pound for pound fighters.

It was not exactly a horrible fight for Mike Brown, but Aldo basically outclassed him the whole way through. I've seen Aldo's four televised WEC fights and it's the same things that get him the win each time:

• Physical fitness: Aldo is really fast even for a featherweight and packs a lot of power in his strikes. You can really hear the impact of his kicks, and just from the look of his punching technique you can sense the power in them.
• Distance control: Lyoto Machida is famous for his ability to stay out of range of his opponent's strikes and sneak in for just enough time to land his own. Aldo does this too, but in a more controlled fashion, as Machida just seems to run back, while Aldo seems a lot more controlled about it. I honestly think Aldo's got one up on Machida in this one.
• Control and timing: Aldo's timing is impeccable! He seems to have this ability to time his knees right when his opponent is moving in, and accordingly, many of his opponents have eaten a huge hit to the face. Aldo's other strikes are also well controlled in their aim, distance, and timing, which I think is similar to Anderson Silva's style.
• Ability to adjust: I've found that fighters tend to overcommit to their attacks, which sometimes open up some vulnerabilities. But Aldo, on the other hand, seems to always be able to find the best offensive and defensive approach at all times, because his movements don't seem overcommitted. He has the ability to transition one of his movements into another one if he realizes that his original idea wasn't going to work, and because of that, he doesn't waste energy or open up too many weaknesses.
• Calmness: Aldo looks just about as chill as Fedor during his fights, and seems to spend the majority of the time in his fights inching slowly toward his opponent. His focus must be really intense, and especially now that he's the champion, this can be intimidating for his future opponents.
• Staying on the feet: Out of all of Aldo's WEC main card fights, this one with Mike Brown was the only one in which Aldo was even remotely close to being taken down. Those well-timed knees must already discourage his opponents from shooting, but in this case, Aldo demonstrated impeccable takedown defense, and indeed although they got clinched on a few occasions, Mike Brown - a great wrestler - wasn't even able to get all that close to taking Aldo down. And to top that off, Aldo is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, so he knows what to do in case he does indeed end up on his back.

I think Aldo has to be tested on the ground before people start to hail him as one of MMA's top fighters, but who knows if anyone will ever be able to take him down. I also have no idea as to how strong his chin is, though by digging through his older fight videos maybe I can find something. I'm already on the bandwagon though regardless and am definitely excited for his next fight, especially if a UFC-WEC merger happens early next year as rumored. I think he's already proven himself by thoroughly outclassing one of MMA's best - which is different from, say, Brian Bowles beating Miguel Torres, which I thought was fairly even before Bowles KO'd Torres. And I'm not sure who the WEC will put against him next, but if it's someone like Urijah Faber, it should be another straightforward victory for Aldo.

Summary: Jose Aldo is THE BOMB.

UFC 106 is coming up quickly on Saturday, and it is definitely one of the best cards in a while, so I am excited, though I'm not sure if I'll be able to see the fights anytime before school resumes following Thanksgiving break.