Imagining an MMA Hall of Fame: Best of the Rest

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Jose Aldo
“Scarface” Eco Fight Championship (2004); Shooto Americas (2004-05); Rio MMA Challenge (2005); Meca World Vale Tudo (2005); UK-1 (2005); FX3 (2005); Jungle Fight (2005); Gold Fighters Championship (2006); Top Fighting Championships (2007); Pancrase (2007); World Extreme Cagefighting (2008-10); Ultimate Fighting Championship (2011-Current)
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Aldo’s hall-of-fame resume has been built purely through athletic excellence. He did not arrive in World Extreme Cagefighting with a lot of hype, but he rose to the top by knocking out opponent after opponent. His quick destruction of the very game Cub Swanson earned him a title shot against Mike Thomas Brown, and he took out the American Top Team veteran to solidify his status as the world’s premier featherweight. There have been no doubts in the five years since, as he has disposed of highly respected foes such as Frankie Edgar, Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes and Kenny Florian. Aldo may be a little underappreciated for what a complete champion he is, and his lack of interest in learning English relative to just about every other dominant Brazilian fighter has limited him in the United States market. However, there is no doubting what an exceptional competitor he is inside the cage.

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