Replay confirmed the blow that nearly knocked Mendes out cold at the close of the first round came while the horn was sounding. Actually, two punches came after the horn. Despite this, the referee did not take a point away and the action moved along.
Shortly into this one, the action was stopped for an errant kick to the groin, with Aldo being on the receiving end of it.
They restarted and Aldo started throwing kicks. Mendes responded with a smile and a low leg kick in return. The furious nature of the previous few minutes calmed quite a bit as the two went back to feeling out the distance.
Mendes landed a hard counter shot to the head while Aldo answered to the body.
A head kick from the champion just missed. Mendes looked as fresh as he did at the start by the close of the round, seemingly recovered from that near knockout to close the first frame.
For more on "Aldo vs. Mendes 2" click here, and for complete UFC 179 results and blow-by-blow coverage of all the night's action click here.
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