Jose Aldo: Could He Be A Force At 155?

A week ago today, 145lb kingpin Jose Aldo made another successful defense of his title.  This time, instead of a methodical picking apart like he did against former Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber, Aldo played it a little safe the first round.  Then in the second, Aldo went for the kill after hurting Manny and secured the TKO victory.

If there were any doubts that Aldo was the best featherweight fighter in the world, those doubts should now be put to rest. He proved that not only is he the best at 145, but also at minimum a top 5 pound-for-pound fighter.

While there still may be an entertaining bout or two left for him right now, he will face a serious lack of competition should the WEC not bring in some fresh meat for the grinding machine that is “Junior.”

But just for giggles, let’s say that Jose tears through everyone the WEC throws at him. Could he be as dominant at 155 in the UFC as he is at 145 in the WEC?

Let’s go with maybe.

While Aldo is as dynamic and explosive as they come in the sport, he would have to put on some weight in order to hold his own on the ground against some of the big, strong wrestlers.

Just imagine Gray Maynard or Sean Sherk keeping Aldo pinned to his back on the mat as they dropped bombs to his dome. Now this leads to another question.

How goods is Jose’s ground game?

With the exception of a few minutes in his fight against Faber, we haven’t got the chance to see the ground game of Aldo in action. He could be absolutely amazing off his back and damn near impossible to take down. There hasn’t been enough of Aldo on the ground to form an intelligent analysis of his skills in that area.  Being a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu though is always good reissurance though.

When it comes to the striking department, Jose’s skills are second to none. It may be a little early to say this, but let’s roll with it–Aldo could be the most dynamic pound-for-pound striker in MMA since Mirko Cro Cop hit the scene in Pride.

At 155, no fighters come to mind that could compete with the speed and, for lack of a better term, suddenness of his striking.

Of course that is to be expected of a lighter fighter, but the difference is Aldo punches like a mule. If he touches your chin, you’re going to sleep.

Would his power move up in weight with him?  Could he hang on the ground with the bigger boys?  I guess we’ll never know until and if it happens.