THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Canadian featherweight Mark (The Machine) Hominick entered the cage at UFC 129 wearing a Hamilton Tiger-Cats ballcap.
By the end of his championship fight Saturday night, he looked like he’d been mauled by one of the furry beasts.
Hominick, from Thamesford, Ont., was a bloody, battered mess after dropping a unanimous decision to featherweight champion Jose Aldo in the co-main event at Rogers Centre. The Canadian took it on the chin for the first four rounds before coming on strong to batter the champion in the fifth round in a bout deemed fight of the night.
“This guy is one of the best pound-for-pound best in the world,” said UFC president Dana White. “I said it before the fight, that I thought this was going to be the fight of the night. I think this kid has a ton of experience, a ton of heart and that he was going to come out and try to win that title tonight.
“He put on a gutsy performance, man. He’s a tiny guy with a huge heart. It was an awesome performance.”
The sellout crowd of 55,724 was on its feet at the end of the bout as Hominick (20-9) completely turned things around after a sluggish start. Aldo (19-1) was strong early on, opening a few cuts on his opponent’s face with some stiff jabs.
He really did some damage with a sharp elbow to Hominick’s temple in the fourth round, and a grotesque egg formed on the Canadian’s forehead. It seemed to get bigger as the fight went on and the crowd groaned every time Hominick’s head was shown on the many big screens around the venue.
A ringside doctor checked him out after he barely survived the fourth round. Hominick got the approval to continue and delivered a stellar final round that had the champion on the brink.
“That kid didn’t want that fight stopped,” White said. “I think the doctor did a great job tonight in checking the eye and making sure that his peripheral vision was good. And then Hominick came out and went after it in that last round. It was awesome. Loved it.”
Hominick (20-8) was considered a heavy underdog in the penultimate match of the night. Aldo, the 145-pound champion, said Hominick was tough to fight off at the end.
“I knew that I won the first four rounds,” Aldo said through an interpreter. “I tried to secure a guillotine (choke), I was unable to do that. So I was just holding on to finish the fight.”
The judges scored it 48-45, 48-46 and 49-46 for Aldo. Hominick was sent to the hospital after the fight and did not appear at the post-event news conference.
“I didn’t throw enough combinations,” he said in the ring after the loss as blood dripped down his cheek. “I was throwing all single shots. I wanted to get one up on him and I let him get one up on me.
“It’s one of those things, you go back to the drawing board and I’ll come back stronger.”
When the horn sounded to end the fight, the Canadian helped Aldo up and they embraced. Hominick — whose nickname comes from his tireless training — then got down on the mat and started doing push-ups, as is his post-fight tradition. Aldo did the same and the fighters shared a laugh.
“I fought hard for you guys and I hope you enjoyed the fight,” Hominick told the adoring crowd.
Both Aldo and Hominick received a $129,000 bonus for fight of the night.
The money will no doubt come in handy for Hominick, whose wife Ashley is expecting their first child — a girl — on May 7.
Hominick told the crowd Saturday night he hoped he had not put his wife into labour. On Sunday morning, he provided an update via Twitter.
“Bunch of people are asking, wife is healthy. Thanks for support and concern. Baby due anyday! Super Excited.”
