Jose Aldo Plays his Cards Right!

On October 19^th, the arguably best pound for pound fighter of the world and WEC featherweight champion, Jose Aldo, declined an offer from the UFC to fight Kenny Florian at lightweight (155lbs). Good move!  The UFC announced its merger with the WEC yesterday. Now Aldo can enjoy UFC caliber pay days as the featherweight champion. To put things in perspective, a UFC champion in a typical championship bout makes as much or more than what all fighters were paid in total at WEC 48. WEC 48 was the biggest fight card payout and only WEC broadcasted on PPV ever! Aldo himself made a mere $60,000 compared to the hundreds of thousands UFC champs bring home from one fight. Who knows, Aldo may be able to dominate at 155. But these days it’s better to play your cards right and make the money where you can. Aldo should cement himself as a great WEC and UFC featherweight champ by winning two or three fights and then move up into the lightweight division. Why not start your career at the top of your division than foray into the stacked UFC lightweight division. Both, the near end of The Ultimate Fighter Season 12 (TUF 12) and the introduction of the already stacked WEC lightweight division set up an array of challenges that can tarnish a fighter’s credibility if the right match up were made and Aldo were to face defeat. Right now, Aldo looks unstoppable. I think he should play to his strengths as he is initially introduced into the mega fight circuit and see where he goes from there. I guess he doesn’t need my advice. Jose Aldo will defend his featherweight title on January 1^st, 2011 against a yet to be determined contender.