By Alex Mattis
Who honestly thought Mark Hominick would leave UFC 129 as the most talked about headliner? Not many. Even in defeat, Hominick’s stock raised greatly this past Saturday in his backyard of Toronto.
Leading into his featherweight title shot against reigning champion and top three Pound-4-Pound fighter, Jose Aldo, there was an unexpected amount of attention being paid to ‘The Machine.’ It’s been said that everyone loves the underdog and Hominick filled the spot of the could-be-home-town-hero. On the UFC 129 conference call, it was apparent that the media took note of Hominick’s story as he was fielding the majority of questions. Admiration and intrigue only swelled with the knowledge that Hominick and his wife were expecting their first child the week of the fight. The attention and pressure seemed to only motivate Hominick.
On to fight night.
To the surprise of none, the Canadian crowd was solely behind Hominick but the fight began almost immediately in Aldo’s favor. The champ began landing devastating leg kicks throughout the 1st round. At the start of the 2nd, however, it was clear that the challenger was determined to see the fights end and Aldo was visually slowing down. Things quickly evened out on the feet and Hominick began landing jabs. The champion quickly began mixing it up and taking the fight to the ground. In the 3rd, Aldo seemed to catch a second wind and dropped Hominick; putting him in serious trouble.
The 4th was all Aldo as the champ grounded the Canadian and unleashed elbows that produced the largest hematoma in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. It looked as though the fight was going to be ceased but the strong spirit of Hominick coupled with the blessing of a particularly ballsy doctor kept 129’s co-main event alive. With an iron will and a second head spawning, Mark Hominick came into the 5th and turned in his best round of the bout. He was able to get on top of Aldo and control him for the majority of the five minutes. While he was unsuccessful in finishing the fight, he punished and pushed the top Pound-4-Pound fighter in way unseen in recent memory.
There was no logical way of arguing that the 4-1 underdog had won the fight, but nearly everyone was shocked that he made it to the final bell. While the belt remained around Aldo’s waist, it’s safe to say that Hominick earned a victory in his own right and assured that there will be interest in a rematch somewhere down the road.
The bout was awarded “Fight of the Night” honors and is already a top frontrunner for “Fight of the Year.”
