Jose Aldo, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s dominant featherweight champion, will defend his belt in a rematch against top-ranked contender Chad Mendes of Sacramento on Aug. 2 at Staples Center in UFC 176.

Aldo (24-1) is the UFC’s second-ranked pound-for-pound fighter. He last fought at UFC 169 in February, beating Ricardo Lamas by unanimous decision.

The Brazilian handed Mendes (16-1) his only defeat, in January 2012 at UFC 142 in Rio de Janeiro, by first-round technical knockout.

Since then, Mendes is 5-0 with four knockouts.


Aldo is 6-0 in the UFC and ranked behind only light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones in the organization’s pound-for-pound rankings.

Staples Center hasn’t hosted a UFC card in two years, when former light-heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua defeated Brandon Vera.

Tickets for UFC 176 go on sale June 13.