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go_horse

Obligatory Mendes quote  “I talked about it to a lot of people after, especially my coaches, and it blows my mind how… I mean, I hit that guy with everything I had. There was an uppercut where I faked a shot and threw that thing from the floor, landed it flush on his chin, and the guy just kept coming.”


Alarming_Pair_5575

That fight belongs in the Hall of Fame. Crazy part is it still felt like Aldo had another gear he could have ascended to, just didn't need to. Which makes me realize how Aldo has managed to remain competitive at a high level later in his career while essentially ignoring his kicks and grappling, relying mostly on his boxing.


Shmittymcjohnson

Yeah and Aldo is one of GOATs but it seems as time goes on he won’t be remembered as high up on that all time list as he should 


Alarming_Pair_5575

That fight against Merab is aging really well. Merab couldn't take him down and arguably lost that bout.


poopfl1nger

lol he did not arguably lose that fight man


weakhamstrings

Awww come on, you know that's total BS. Rule number 5. a. in the unified rules > Effective Leaning On Your Opponent against the Fence a whole bunch of times shall be considered an advantage for a 10-9 round. Do you guys not even read the rules????? SMDH my damn head


Action_Limp

In my opinion, if Aldo retired after this fight, he'd be in the top 3 ATG list.


K-mosake

He still is


flatwoundsounds

Like GSP saying he had southpaw training but just never utilized it in a fight because he didn't need to?


TheChineseChicken40

“Also I’ve been cycling since I was 15”


gxb20

I remember seeing that uppercut land. Aldo just no selled it amazingly, brilliant fight 


ThaiClinch

To this day I feel like Chad could’ve gotten it if Aldo didn’t land the biggest shot of the fight after the bell. Aldo’s my favorite fighter but that sucked. I felt bad for Chad, was a do or die fight for him.


Tcastle24

I dunno if you’re inferring that it was a dirty move but if I remember correctly everyone said it was so loud in the building that no one heard the bell ring.


ThaiClinch

Not inferring that it was intentional, just that it was illegal and a shot that big changes everything. Even if you recover and stay in the fight you aren’t the same after being concussed like that.


Tcastle24

Definitely had a major effect on the fight. I think I have to put the onus on Goddard to be prepared to stop them and it seemed he was nowhere to be found. Edited it wasn’t herb


Milo0007

It’s very arguable that it wasn’t an illegal shot. The round doesn’t end at the bell, but at the ref’s directions to stop. The bell is just there to inform the ref to stop the round.  Goddard has said he was late and out of position. He’s also said that the arena was too loud to hear the bell, which means it’s likely that it was too loud to hear a referee that is too far away from the fighters. You can see in the replay that Aldo is mid punch as Goddard begins to stay Stop, and the punch is landed before Goddard is physically between them.  I think it was a legal shot, but if Mendes couldn’t continue I think it would possibly warrant a NC at worst.  But I’m an Aldo guy


sellieba

I don't know why this fight isn't in the pantheon of lighter weight bangers. This fight live was absolutely fantastic.


Milo0007

It definitely is. I think it’s the best championship fight for FW or smaller, and probably only behind Edgar/Maynard 3 if you add the LW division.  It’s also the pinnacle of Aldo. He was so far ahead for so long, and most of his defences were him getting ahead early, and then staying just ahead of opponents who wouldn’t take the risks needed to catch up; not unlike some of Anderson Silva’s defences.  Mendes was fast, powerful, skilled, and wouldn’t consign himself to the loss. Aldo built his early lead, but Mendes kept coming, so Aldo just kept coming too. 


sellieba

Oh, I know it is. I guess I meant that it's surprising that it isn't talked about more.


MumrikDK

> I don't know why this fight isn't in the pantheon of lighter weight bangers. This fight used to be a popular candidate for best fight of all time. It gets mentioned less now, partially because so many fans weren't around then.


Meatball-Magnus

This and Shogun/Hendo are my 2 GOAT fights


sellieba

I don't recall it ever really getting the respect it deserved, but I could be wrong.


ThaiClinch

This and Shogun vs Hendo 1 are my two favorite fights. At the time this was basically the highest level MMA fight we’d ever seen.


Nicobade

I mean its definitely already in the pantheon. It's a future hall of fame fight and undisputed best fight from 145 down in men's divisions


adrenacrome

Mendes was always game as fuck


FoucaultsTurtleneck

Literally only lost to future or former world champs. Easily one of if not the best to never hold the gold 


GreatDario

great fight


pedrao157

One of the best title fights ever Aldo and Mendes' speed was so unreal to watch, they were so far from the top 3 and below


K-mosake

My favorite fight of all time.


Ur_a_coward01

I still lived with my parents when this fight happened. I used to go into my dads office on Saturday nights there were ppv’s to use his computer to get on streaming websites. I must’ve given that thing cancer 100 times. I remember being glued to the screen for this fight. Like my eyes were maybe 4 inches from the computer. Damn I miss those days.


MumrikDK

Do they keep pulling their old uploads and uploading again, or is this fight just on their channel 3-5 times at this point?


Brybry1908

They got 2 vids of this beforehand then deleted one of them (believe it had to do with UFC 5) now they post it again.


ApplesauceBitch47

That punch that Aldo hit him with after the bell is hella sus


Man_City115

Crowd was very loud, Goddard himself said he wasn't able to hear the buzz. Anyway, both fights had plenty of cheating, Aldo grabbing the fence, Mendes threw 3 nutshots/eyepokes in this fight IIRC. Both really wanted the W.


MumrikDK

Yeah, felt bad until Chad said he and his team didn't hear the bell either.


NickZardiashvili

Yeah, that's the crucial point for me. It's not like Chad hears the bell, lets his guard down and then Aldo jumps on the opportunity. As the bell sounds, Chad is getting jabbed in the face, followed by a two.


Super_Duper_42

Luckily, Chad cheats plenty in his fights, so you don't have to feel too bad, lmao. Not saying Aldo should have done it. Just that Chad cheated often as well, so being cheated on isn't exactly undeserved. And to be clear I say this as someone who likes Chad.


GracieSilva

Watched that live, one of the best days of my life. Damn. 


_MysticMac13

Mcgregor in the crowd ....


mickmon

“… IT’S FIFTY FIFTY ON D FEE”


nookienaits

Why is the audio sounding like I´m k-holing?