The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Maracanãzinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil tonight for UFC 179: “Aldo vs Mendes 2.” The event was headlined by a UFC Featherweight Championship rematch between champion José “Scarface” Aldo and top contender Chad “Money” Mendes.

Also on the card tonight, Glover Teixeira took on Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis in the light heavyweight co-feature. Fabio Maldonado battled Hans Stringer in another 205-pound bout and Darren “The Damage” Elkins met Lucas “Mineiro” Martins at 145. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.

 

UFC Featherweight Championship

José “Scarface” Aldo vs Chad “Money” Mendes

Round 1:
Mendes rushed in right away and landed leg kicks and a combination. Aldo returned fire with flurries to the head and body, but Mendes landed another quick combo and he knocked Aldo down for a split second with a lead left hook. The fighters traded leg kicks and Aldo kicked to the body. Mendes landed a left hook and followed with an overhand right. Aldo jabbed and Mendes cracked him with two more left hands.

Aldo backed him up with punches and a leg kick, but he ate a counter left hook and a one-two in return. Time was called after Aldo was poked in the eye. Action continued and Aldo fired off a lengthy combination. He dropped Mendes with a looping hook and swarmed on him with punches from mount. Mendes stood and he was dropped by a right hand that landed after the bell sounded. 10-9 Aldo.

Round 2:
Aldo landed a combination early in round two and stuffed a takedown. Time was called after Aldo was inadvertently kicked in the groin. The fight continued and Aldo landed a body kick. Mendes checked a leg kick and answered with a kick of his own. He landed more kicks to the lead leg and body, but Aldo stopped his forward momentum with a lead left hook.

Stiff jabs from Aldo kept Mendes at bay, but he countered a combination with punches over the top. Aldo began to target the body with punches and Mendes stuck to his strategy of kicking from the outside. He lunged in with a nice left hook and the fighters traded punches just before the end of the round. 10-9 Aldo.

Round 3:
Aldo was poked in the eye again in round three and time was called for the doctor to check on him. Action resumed and both men landed big punches. Aldo scored with a right hook to the body and Mendes replied with two right hands to the jaw. A left hook and a series of lunging punches backed Mendes up, but he regained his footing and countered with overhand rights.

Mendes rocked Aldo with an uppercut and stunned him again with a left hook. Aldo recovered and wobbled Mendes with a counter right. Mendes dropped to his knees on two occasions and Aldo sprawled out with punches. Mendes stood and Aldo landed big left hooks. Mendes took his back and threw him down, then landed foot stomps as Aldo stood up. The close round ended with a powerful left hook from Mendes. 10-9 Aldo.

Round 4:
The fourth round began with an exchange of jabs and Mendes punched his way in close with quick left hands and uppercuts. Aldo began to bleed from beside the left eye and Mendes landed another uppercut, but Aldo immediately responded with a right hand that snapped his head back. Mendes attempted a head kick and Aldo blocked it.

Aldo tagged Mendes with a left-right combo and Mendes missed with a wild uppercut. He scored with a two-punch combo to the body and head and a bloodied Aldo came up short with counters. Aldo jabbed and snuck in a nice left hook that backed Mendes up. He rushed in with a flying knee that just missed in the final seconds. 10-9 Mendes.

Round 5:
Mendes clipped Aldo with two left hooks in round five, but Aldo appeared to be unfazed and he landed right hands in return. Mendes scored with a body kick and he finally got Aldo down to the mat. Aldo tried to get back to his feet against the cage, but Mendes kept him pinned down. Aldo eventually stood up and he pressed forward with punches. An uppercut and a right hook stunned Mendes and Aldo took his back.

Mendes rose from his knees and broke free from Aldo’s grasp. Mendes missed with an uppercut and Aldo staggered him with a right cross. Another one-two scored for Aldo and Mendes replied with a lead left hook. He tried to take Aldo down, but Aldo stuffed it. Mendes threw kicks in the final 20 seconds and Aldo finished the round with a flying kick to the body. 10-9 Aldo.

Winner: José Aldo by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) after five rounds. He improves to 25-1-0 and remains the UFC Featherweight Champion.

 

Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis vs Glover Teixeira

Round 1:
Teixeira stuffed an early takedown and countered right hands from Davis with a three-punch combination. Davis circled away as Teixeira landed lead left hooks. The fighters clinched and Teixeira landed a knee to the body. Davis replied with a right hook and a takedown attempt, but Teixeira stayed on his feet. He tried for a guillotine choke, but Davis finally got him down. Davis landed right hands as Teixeira tried to get back to his feet. Davis muscled him down again and landed more punches from the back. 10-9 Davis.

Round 2:
Davis mixed things up with quick punches and a front kick in the opening minute of round two. Teixeira landed a nice left hook in return, but Davis dragged him down to the mat. Teixeira reversed, but Davis returned to his feet within seconds. Teixeira tried to pull guard with a guillotine choke, but Davis pulled his head out and transitioned to Teixeira’s back.

Teixeira stood up and Davis tried to take him back down. Teixeira defended well and the fighters separated. Time was called after Teixeira was poked in the right eye. Action resumed and both men landed punches. Davis circled to his right and landed a pair of one-twos. He followed with a body kick and took Teixeira down into back control before the bell. 10-9 Davis.

Round 3:
Davis wasted no time in taking Teixeira back down in round three and he transitioned from half-guard to back control. Davis threw knees to the body and looked to set up a rear-naked choke. Teixeira got to one knee and Davis unloaded with a series of right hands. Teixeira finally got back to his feet, only to be taken right back down by Davis. More knees and short right hands scored for Davis as Teixeira battled back up. Davis tripped him again and finished the round with punches and knees. 10-9 Davis.

Winner: Phil Davis by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 13-2-0, 1 NC.

 

Fabio Maldonado vs Hans Stringer

Round 1:
Stringer took Maldonado down into half-guard right away and he landed short elbows from the top. Maldonado tied him up from the bottom, but Stringer snuck in more elbow strikes as the round progressed. He eventually got to S-mount and landed more elbows, but Maldonado scrambled back to his feet. Stringer immediately took him down again and Maldonado began to bleed from the forehead as a result of Stringer’s elbows. 10-9 Stringer.

Round 2:
Stringer clinched in round two, but Maldonado defended well against the cage. Stringer backed away and landed a pair of overhand rights. He followed with leg kicks and took Maldonado down. Maldonado got back to his feet and Stringer lost his balance while attempting a takedown. He fell on his face and rolled to his back, and Maldonado punished him with ground and pound to the head and body. Stringer covered up and offered nothing in return as Maldonado punched away until the fight was stopped.

Winner: Fabio Maldonado by TKO (Punches) at 4:06 of round two. He improves to 22-7-0.

 

Darren “The Damage” Elkins vs Lucas “Mineiro” Martins

Round 1:
Elkins countered early leg kicks from Martins by shooting in for a takedown and he got Martins down against the fence. Martins stood and Elkins backed away after landing a one-two. Leg kicks were exchanged and Elkins attempted another takedown, but Martins stuffed it. Elkins set up another takedown attempt with punches and he followed with knees in the clinch. Sloppy punches landed for Elkins, but Martins cracked him with a knee and a combination as Elkins closed in. 10-9 Elkins.

Round 2:
The second round began with an exchange of left hooks and Elkins shot in for a takedown. Martins stayed on his feet against the cage and Elkins punched to the body. Martins eventually created enough space to land a combination and a head kick that stunned Elkins, who clinched again to buy time to recover. The lacklustre round ended in a clinch against the fence. 10-10.

Round 3:
Elkins clinched again in the final round and the crowd showered the cage with boos as the fighters engaged in a stalemate against the fence. Martins landed occasional knees in close and Elkins kept him pinned against the cage. Elkins punched to the body and the fighters were separated on two occasions. Elkins landed an overhand right and shot in for a takedown. Martins countered with elbows and stayed on his feet. 10-9 Martins. Dreadful fight.

Winner: Darren Elkins by Split Decision (30-27, 30-27, 27-30) after three rounds. He improves to 18-4-0.

 

Beneil Dariush vs Carlos Diego Ferreira

Round 1:
The opening round began with an exchange of jabs and Dariush mixed in kicks to the lead leg and upper body. Ferreira countered with a one-two and Dariush landed another hard leg kick. Ferreira clinched and landed a knee to the body, but Dariush reversed against the fence. He backed away and Ferreira rushed forward with a lunging hook and a flurry of follow-up punches. Dariush landed a combination of his own and he threw Ferreira to the mat. Ferreira upkicked and attempted a heel hook before the bell. Close round. 10-9 Dariush, barely.

Round 2:
Dariush took Ferreira down into back control in round two, but Ferreira scrambled back to his feet. Dariush landed knees and tried for another takedown. Ferreira slipped after Dariush landed a knee, but Dariush allowed him to stand. Hard body kicks scored for Dariush and he took Ferreira down again. Dariush moved to half-guard and Ferreira worked for a kimura and an omoplata. Dariush stood and dropped back into Ferreira’s guard with a left hand. 10-9 Dariush.

Round 3:
Ferreira landed a big flurry of punches in round three and finished with a right hook that backed Dariush up. More hooks and uppercuts scored for Ferreira and he reversed a takedown. The fighters stood and Dariush took Ferreira down. From the top in Ferreira’s guard, Dariush landed short elbows and Ferreira responded with punches from his back. Dariush passed to side control and took Ferreira’s back seconds later. He landed punches as Ferreira rose to a knee. Dariush scored with knees to the head and body to close out the fight. 10-9 Dariush.

Winner: Beneil Dariush by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 9-1-0.

 

Undercard Fights:

– Neil Magny defeated William “Patolino” Macario by TKO (Punches) at 2:40 of round three. He improves to 13-3-0 with the win.

– Yan Cabral defeated Naoyuki Kotani by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:06 of round two. He improves to 12-1-0 with the win.

– Wilson Reis defeated Scott “Young Guns” Jorgensen by Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) at 3:28 of round one. He improves to 19-5-0 with the win.

– Andre “Touchy” Fili defeated Felipe “Sertanejo” Arantes by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 14-2-0 with the win.

– Gilbert “Durinho” Burns defeated Christos “The Spartan” Giagos by Submission (Armbar) at 4:57 of round one. He improves to 9-0-0 with the win.

– Tony Martin defeated Fabricio “Morango” Camões by Submission (Kimura) at 4:16 of round one. He improves to 9-2-0 with the win.