Photos: Josh Hedges
José Aldo successfully defended his UFC belt for the second time last night, in Houston, bringing his winning streak to 13. Just after the five-round fight with Kenny Florian at UFC 136 last night in Houston, Aldo admitted he had an idea his opponent would make it hard for him to finish, as Florian stiffled him with the clinch.
“It was more or less what I’d expected, Kenny being the strategist he is. He’s a great fighter, has fought in a bunch of divisions. I knew he was waiting for me to make a mistake, so I tried containing my excitement. I’ll be better at the next one,” said Aldo.
On his strategy for facing Kenny, who made things hard on him in the opening round up against the fencing, Aldo said he got keys from BJ Penn’s fight with Florian.
“I knew he’d put me up against the fencing and I’m really good at defending from there. I expected it and defended and threw strikes accordingly.
In the break between each round, Aldo’s coach, Dedé Pederneiras, implored the fighter to kick, to further punish Florian’s already battered leg, but the champion decided not to risk it, as a question of strategy.
“He was looking to go for the takedown when I’d kick. Any thing I’d do and he’d shoot in on my legs, so I restrained myself in kicking. I could have landed a bunch but kept calm to be sure of the win,” he said in closing.
