UFC 142: Ranking Aldo's Most Dangerous Title Threats

At UFC 142, Jose Aldo will arguably face his most dangerous opponent to date in Chad "Money" Mendes, a high-level, undefeated wrestler.

The rest of the division has also been active as of late.  Florian has decided to move up in division, Hominick has fallen in the rankings, Hioki has entered the UFC and prospects continue to impress.

Aldo will be tested by Mendes, but even if he emerges victorious he won't catch much of a break.

Here are Aldo's most dangerous contenders at featherweight.

5. Jim Hettes

Jim Hettes continued to impress at UFC 141 when he beat Nam Phan.

He wasn't able to finish Nam Phan, and his nine-fight submission streak came to a halt.

He compensated for this by handing Nam Phan one of the most brutal beatdowns ever witnessed in the Octagon.  

He may not hold wins over any high-level featherweights yet, but he has been dominant in all of his performances, and his potential is impossible to ignore.

His good takedowns, good submissions and newly-discovered, high-paced, laser-sighted ground and pound make him a huge threat to anyone he gets on top of.

Aldo included.

4. Eric Koch

Eric Koch is a very well-rounded and very dangerous fighter.  He won most of his early fights by submission but started knocking out his opposition in more recent times.

His lone loss came to Chad Mendes in the WEC, who is currently fighting for Aldo's title.

Koch was originally set to fight Dustin Poirier to determine who would fight the winner of Aldo versus Mendes, but Koch had to pull out with an injury.

But don't expect him to be far removed from the title shot for too long.  He is dangerous everywhere and is a threat to anyone in the division.

3. Dustin Poirier

Dustin Poirier entered the UFC with an 8-1 record and decided to fill in for Aldo against Josh Grispi, a fighter who was riding a 10-fight win streak.

The consensus was that Grispi was the superior fighter and would easily best Poirier.

Poirier then surprised everyone by securing a 30-27 unanimous decision victory.  He has since secured three additional wins.

Poirier, like Koch, is a well-rounded fighter who is dangerous anywhere.

Aldo would hold a clear advantage over Poirier, but not an unsurmountable one, and Poirier is dangerous enough on the ground and is well-enough conditioned to pull off the upset against Aldo.

2. Hatsu Hioki

Aldo is a far better striker than Hioki.  Then again, Aldo is a better striker than just about anyone.

But not just about anyone is a better grappler than Aldo.

Hioki has been one of the top featherweights for years due to his good defense on the feet and his grappling brilliance on the mat.

He has outclassed other high-level grapplers on the ground throughout his career, and all of his losses in the last six years have been controversial split decisions.

Hioki's main problem will be overcoming the strength of Aldo.  Aldo is one of the strongest fighters in the division, and Hioki had trouble in his UFC debut dealing with the strength of George Roop.

But if Hioki can get Aldo down, Aldo would find himself in very serious danger of being submitted.

1. Chad Mendes

Mendes is the biggest threat to Aldo's belt because he is the best wrestler in the division.  It's that simple.

We have not seen Aldo on his back much, but he has not looked fantastic when he has been successfully taken down.

Aldo is usually able to subvert this shortcoming with his superb takedown defense.  But Aldo's takedown defense won't be able to stop Mendes' takedown offense.

Aldo's ground game and endurance will be heavily tested by Mendes, and no one should be surprised if Mendes is able to pull off the upset.