5 reasons why José Aldo deserves to be recognized as an MMA G.O.A.T.

#2. Aldo's success against multiple generations of the world's best fighters

Throughout MMA's history, countless great fighters have emerged to pen their careers into the pages of the sport's storybook. However, many great mixed martial artists hit a wall whenever they were forced to compete against up-and-coming fighters who had a modern and more evolved fighting style.

Skilled new fighters come into the sport and do well against the previous generation that they grew up watching and studying due to the wealth of footage on them.

Once these new fighters encounter opponents of their own generation, their performances grow less impressive. Not only does the new generation of fighters have footage on older generation fighters, but they're also typically larger and more athletic as sports science advances.

Then as time passes, fighters who were once new become the older generation who must contend with foes who are larger, more athletic and have considerable footage of them.

However, the greatest fighters of all time perform well against multiple generations of the world's best fighters. José Aldo is one such case. The former UFC champion defeated the greats of yesteryear like Urijah Faber as well as the best of his own generation like Chad Mendes and Franke Edgar.

While Aldo failed in his pursuit of the UFC bantamweight championship, he still managed to amass a win streak that included top fighters from a new generation like Marlon 'Chito' Vera, who is currently on a 4-fight win streak. Other new generation fighters like Pedro Munhoz, Rob Font and Renato Moicano are also on Aldo's list of victims.

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#1. He has the most title defenses in UFC featherweight history

José Aldo is the most successful featherweight in UFC history. For the longest time, 'Scarface' was the only featherweight champion in the promotion's storybook. While he was eventually dethroned by Conor McGregor at UFC 194, his legacy cannot be overlooked. Aldo reigned over the featherweight division for 3 years, during which he recorded 7 consecutive title defenses.

Not only did his stretch as champion earn him a place among the UFC's top 5 most successful champions in terms of consecutive title defenses, but the Brazilian's list of felled challengers included a winning streak over elite competition.

When Aldo defeated Mark Hominick, his opponent was at the helm of a 5-fight win streak. Kenny Florian, another Aldo casualty, is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters to have never captured UFC gold.

Frankie Edgar, who Aldo defeated twice, is a former UFC lightweight champion. Similarly, Chad Mendes was defeated twice by Aldo. The three-time title challenger Mendes possessed an undefeated record prior to his first bout against the Brazilian. Lastly, both Ricardo Lamas and Chan Sung Jung were on winning streaks of their own when they faced Aldo and got demolished.

No other UFC featherweight has defended their championship as many times as Aldo has, nor did they have to defeat challengers from multiple generations. While Alexander Volkanovski is currently sitting with 4 consecutive title defenses, his legacy still ranks behind 'Junior's.