Chad Mendes Blasts Jose Aldo, Urijah Faber Welcomes Rivalry With Nova Uniao

Team Alpha Male recently picked up their first-ever UFC title at May 24’s UFC 173 when TJ Dillashaw beat former dominant champion Renan Barao in one of the biggest upsets the sport has ever seen.

After the win, a photo of a team Muay Thai training session had Barao’s name listed at the bottom, a jab at the Brazilian that drew quite the response from Barao’s good friend, UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. “Junior,” who is set to rematch Chad Mendes in the main event of UFC 176 on August 2, promised “payback” for Team Alpha Male’s disrespect.

Mendes caught win of the champ’s statement and vowed to “beat his a**” on Twitter today, further inciting the flames of what may be MMA’s hottest camp-to-camp rivalry.

Despite losing to Aldo and Barao twice, Team Alpha Male leader Urijah Faber appeared to welcomes his team’s participation in the rivalry on UFC Tonight:

Team Alpha Male vs. Team Nova Uniao has a real rivalry going on and Urijah Faber is in full support of it.

— UFC Tonight (@UFCTonight) June 5, 2014

There’s not much doubt that the two teams are dominating the landscapes of the UFC’s lower weight divisions right now, and for good reason. Aldo and Mendes are at the top of the talented 145-pound landscape. Faber will face Alex Caceres at July’s UFC 175, and Barao, although unlikely to gain an immediate rematch with Dillashaw, should return to a big fight sometime soon.

If the pieces fall into place, this could be MMA’s best rivalry for years to come.

Nova Uniao’s first loss to Faber and his crew is out of the way, meaning the competition is truly beginning to heat up. Can “Money” cash in on his second opportunity at the belt, or will Aldo finish him like he did before?

Photo: Kyle Terada for USA TODAY Sports