Mark Hominick earned a shot at the UFC featherweight title with a win over George Roop at Saturday's UFC Fight for the Troops 2, putting on a very impressive striking display and establishing himself as the No. 1 contender to the 145-pound king, Jose Aldo.Hominick leveled Roop with a big right hand to the chin within the first minute of the first round, and although Roop quickly got back up, he appeared off balance and not all there. Hominick kept battering away at Roop's head and knocking him down repeatedly, and it wasn't long before the referee stepped in to stop the fight, giving Hominick a TKO victory at 1:28 of the first round.
"I'm thrilled," Hominick said afterward. "If you're next in line for a title shot, you go out there and prove it and I did that with my fists tonight. . . . I think Jose's the best pound-for-pound, but he hasn't fought anyone like me."
Now Hominick is expected to face Aldo at UFC 129 on April 30 in Toronto. The Canadian Hominick will have the home crowd on his side, but he'll be a huge underdog to Aldo, who's the best featherweight in the world by a large margin. Hominick isn't the No. 1 contender because he has a good shot at beating Aldo, he's the No. 1 contender because the UFC doesn't have anyone else to put in the Octagon with Aldo.
But take nothing away from Hominick, who looked great in earning the 20th win of his career Saturday night. Hominick is a terrific featherweight, even if he's going to have an uphill battle against Aldo.
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