UFC 129 Results: Jose Aldo Defends Title in a Hard Fought Battle

Jose Aldo lands a blow on Mark Hominick at UFC 129

UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo had one of the toughest fights of his career against top contender Mark Hominick.  Despite a huge final round for the Canadian fighter, Aldo utilized quick head movement, takedowns, punishing leg kicks and powerful hooks to successfully retain his title.

Aldo attacked the leg early on and countered with uppercuts.  The fight was beginning to mirror Aldo’s performance against Urijah Faber where he battered the former champ’s leg with chopping low kicks.  About halfway through the opening round, Aldo secured a takedown.  Hominick countered with an armbar attempt but Aldo defended well.  The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt pinned Hominick towards the cage and was content to throw elbows and strikes from his guard.

Round two saw Hominick doing a better job at closing in on Aldo.  Aldo displayed great head movement but Hominick was able to land more strikes than he did in the first.  The young Brazilian took his Canadian counterpart down again midway through the round and was able score points by posturing up with strikes.  Referee John McCarthy stood the fighters back up with a minute left but Aldo took Hominick down again, landing in side control and finished the round there.

The battle continues between Jose Aldo and Mark Hominick at UFC 129

Round three saw both fighters content to stand and exchange jabs in the center of the cage.  Hominick began to feel his rhythm with the left jab as Aldo countered.  As the “Machine” began to get comfortable after a few failed takedown attempts by Aldo, he was rocked by a right-left combo.  Aldo tried to finish the Canadian but was unable to do so by the end of the round.

Jose Aldo grounds Mark Hominick at UFC 129

The Nova Uniao fighter brought his momentum into the fourth round and his right hand found its home on a few occasions.  A straight right hand dropped Hominick again halfway through the round and Aldo followed him down to punish him near the fence.  A huge hematoma could be seen developing on Hominick’s forehead.  With less than a minute left, referee John McCarthy halted the fight to bring in the doctor.  Surprisingly, Hominick was given the green light to continue.  Aldo finished the round with a takedown.

Mark Hominick, who never gives up, beats on Jose Aldo looking for a finish at UFC 129

Aldo continued to attack the leg and head of Hominick in the final round. Hominick was able to score a takedown as blood poured out from under his eye.  The fans erupted every time Mark landed strikes as a seemingly exhausted Aldo defended.  Hominick tried his best to finish the round, throwing everything in his arsenal but it was not enough to finish the UFC champion.  It was a valiant effort in the final round but it was a little too late.

Jose Aldo retained his UFC featherweight championship with a unanimous decision after five rounds.

“Take your hat to Mark Hominick, he’s a hell of a fighter,” said Aldo.

“First off, I just want to say to my wife that I hope I didn’t put you into labor. I know you’re do any minute. I love you, babe and I hope that you’re okay. And second, I just want to thank John McCarthy for not stopping the fight. I was never going to give up,” said Hominick graciously.

“I didn’t throw enough combinations. I was throwing all single shots. I wanted to get one up on him and I let him get one up on me. It’s one of those things, you go back to the drawing board and I’ll come back stronger.”

“I thought I could’ve attacked a bit more on the ground. I thought he was going to be attacking me more instead of holding me down. I fought hard for you guys and I hope you enjoy the fight.”