UFC 179 results recap: He Said What?! 'Aldo vs. Mendes' edition!

UFC 179 would have been a night to forget, had it not been for the captivating featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes (watch it again here).

The two men put forth one of the best title fights of the year, and undoubtedly one of the best featherweight title fights of all time. On a night chock full of poor performances, both Aldo and Mendes shined brighter than ever before, leaving everyone watching the pay-per-view (PPV) satisfied that they hung tough throughout the night's not-so-shining moments.

In the end, Aldo defended his belt for the seventh time.

Before all the action unfolded inside the Octagon, there were a ton of promotional appearances to generate awareness for the year's most anticipated rematch. Fighters said this and that, hyping the fight and event in hopes of garnering massive PPV buys.

MMAmania.com does a pretty good job of passing along all the noteworthy pre- and post-fight comments for each event. But, as we've done before, let us look at some of the most glaring remarks said not long before they stepped into the cage on Saturday night.

The one mistake that I made in that fight is that I let up right at the last second and you can't do that with a guy as skilled as Aldo. It's something that has played in my mind over and over again. It's something I'm not going to let happen again, ever. I've gotten so much better; this is a new and improved Chad Mendes. I'm going to be looking to take his head off.

-- Well Chad, you definitely tried to take Aldo's head off, and you certainly looked vastly improved since your first fight with the champion. Unfortunately for you, the loss will likely sting the same as the first, but your incredible performance may garner you another crack at the featherweight kingpin in the very near future.

Mendes certainly did not "let up" one bit last night, staying is Aldo's face for all five rounds. In the end, however, he simply did not have enough to take the title back home to Sacramento.

He's anxious indeed, but not to rip my head off, but to stay on the ground again sleeping. I've been following Chad's fights, and he's not fought anyone ranked in the top of the division. He's never had a true test. I've always had tougher adversaries than him, so when he confronts me, he'll see who the champion is, and then he's going to have to accept it.

--Well Jose, Chad didn't look very anxious in last night's wild bout (recap). In fact, Mendes came out with supreme confidence in round one, and even dropped the champion early on. Ultimately, Aldo ate his words of "never having a true test" as Mendes quickly put Aldo in positions he had never experienced during his UFC career.

In the end though, Aldo talked the talk and walked the walk. Both men gave each other their toughest tests, but Aldo did enough to prove why he is the champion and why he is considered the best in the world.

Phil Davis has very good cardio. If I let this fight go to a decision, I guess that's his strongest point. He likes to outpoint guys over here, you know, takedowns, working punches over there. I can't let that happen. I want to knock this guy out, I want to finish him. I'm going to push the KO in this fight and I think I have a nice advantage of my feet.

-- Well, in some ways it seems that Glover Teixeira knew his unceremonious defeat was a strong possibility. The fight did end up going to decision, and Davis easily outpointed the former No. 1 contender (replay here).

Of course, you can likely expect Teixeira to hype every fight before hand with the fact that he will be looking for a knockout, but unfortunately that can not always occur. Whether or not Teixeira had an advantage on the feet is moot, because Davis utilized an effective game plan to stifle the Brazilian's offense.

It may be time for Teixeira to go back to the drawing board. After winning 19 straight fights, the Brazilian has lost two straight and is in danger of falling way out of contention in the light heavyweight division if things don't turn around quickly.

I know I can beat anyone if I'm healthy, if I'm trained right, and if I employ the right game plan. I think he has a great skill set and he's been very successful with it. But I think we match up well. It all depends on who will be able to literally and figuratively get to the punch first.

-- Davis sure hit the nail on the head when noting he needed to have the right game plan. His coaches certainly trained him well, as he looked better than ever before, dominating Teixeira in a way we have yet to see against the tough Brazilian.

When Davis said "we match up well," did he mean to say "my wrestling is far superior than his, especially considering he is notably a stand-up fighter?" Because that is what occurred on Saturday evening. "Mr. Wonderful" knew he had this fight in the bag as long as his cardio and pressure held up throughout the 15 minutes, and it sure did.

That's a wrap!

For more results and fallout from UFC 179 including play-by-play, videos, reactions, recaps, and more, check out our "Aldo vs Mendes" live story stream right here.