Chad Mendes: ‘It’s Hard To Say No’ Alexander Volkanowski As Featherweight Goat

The greatest debate of all time (GOAT) in mixed martial arts (MMA) will never end.

Former two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and one-time World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) Champion Jose Aldo was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame last month (July 7, 2023). The ultimate in featherweight, Aldo has secured a rightful place in the hallway and left a lasting legacy behind him after retiring from MMA in 2022 after a short run in the bantamweight division.

One of Aldo’s most famous rivals is Team Alpha Male’s Chad Mendes, who fought twice against the famous Brazilian fighter. Delivering an all-time classic at UFC 179 in October 2014, Mendes — the all-time featherweight great in In his own right – never received gold before. But going toe-to-toe with every 145-pound UFC champion aside from Max Holloway in 2023, Aldo and Holloway are common choices in the GOAT featherweight discussion. while Alexander Volkanovsky continued to stretch his power with nothing but an impressive title defense.

“It’s very hard to deny Volkanovski, man,” Mendes told MMA Mania. “The man was in tears. He’s someone I respect a lot. He’s a really cool guy. in that fight I don’t want to say that I overlooked him. But I’ve done this many times. and i feel guilty But I underestimated who he was going to beat.

“I know he’s a good friend,” he continued. “He’s a good guy, but I don’t know when I think of a guy like Jose Aldo during his heyday. It’s such a crazy athlete, explosive, great IQ, powerful as hell. Dangerous in so many ways, in my mind like the most dangerous and fearsome featherweight guy and the GOAT, but he (Volkanovsky) beat them all. Volkanovsky was not that scary. It’s just that he’s a good guy everywhere.”

Mendes served as Volkanovski’s first real test in UFC waters after winning his first five titles and proving to be a viable contender. To cap off 2018 at the final event of the year, “The Great” was tested by the three-time title challengers as their fight was honored with “Fight of the Night” at UFC 232, with Volkanovski leading the fight. win through Second Round Technical Knockout (punch) After that, the Aussies took Aldo and Holloway (twice) in succession.

“I think what sets him apart from the others “He can do 100 per cent or 110 per cent from start to finish,” Mendes says. got one or two rounds And then whether they go down a bit or come down a little bit and end like that, he doesn’t.” He was in the 100 to 110 output range and started to finish that way. Of course it’s hard to cope. It doesn’t matter if you are the best fighter in the world or the worst technical fighter in the world. If you can punch a wall and you’re hard pressed to please things from start to finish, man, it’s going to be a tough fight.

“He has great technique. And he can do it,” he concluded. “I think that’s what sets him apart from the rest of the guys. It’s hard to deny. He beat everyone.”

The Volkanovki bout was an important bout in Mendes’ career history as it was his last bout in the UFC and MMA. “Money” decided to call it a career shortly thereafter. This resulted in him finally diving into the world of bare knee boxing (BKB).

Mendes made a successful comeback in boxing in February 2022, making his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) debut with a fourth-round technical knockout of Joshuah Alvarez (watch highlights). However, the opportunity to clash with former UFC mogul and Bellator lightweight Eddie Alvarez appeared in April 2023. Unfortunately for Mendes, he missed out. Exciting races through split decisions (see highlights) and now stepping backwards towards retirement. as he focuses on his passion for hunting.

“To be honest, I should have finished after the first bare finger fight. But it’s one of those things where it’s not like 100 per cent.

“Of course I still have the drive to compete. That’s not over yet. I’ve been doing that all my life. for me The reason I stepped out of the UFC, in my opinion, is It’s not worth what I put my heart and soul into for the amount of money I earn. I make more money from what I do now. so i don’t know It was hard for me to justify myself as suicidal.”

Knowing that being fully dedicated to the sport is a requirement to do your best in UFC, Mendes didn’t want to cheat himself, despite feeling that he was 90 percent focused on his time in MMA late on. Still in excellent shape at the age of 38 when he met Alvarez. He believes he could be in the top 5 of the UFC at 145 pounds.

“In my heart there is no [I’m not coming back]”But I’ve always said if the money is good I might still have that option for three years and if it makes sense, yes, I’ll come back and probably do it again. We’ll see. I’m retired now. But we will see what happens in the next few months or years and go from there.”