Candidates for Breakout Fighter of the Year were in no short supply for 2009. Jon Jones. Marius Zaromskis. Cain Velasquez. Mo Lawal. Junior dos Santos. Brian Bowles. Each guy made a solid case for the award.
Yet, among all that talent, one guy stood above the rest.
Jose Aldo began 2009 as a blue chip prospect to keep your eye on. He entered the year with a 12-1 pro record and two victories in the WEC.
In the blink of an eye, he racked up three first round knockouts and found himself knocking on Mike Brown’s door. When Brown answered, Aldo ransacked his home and stole his featherweight belt from him.
Full results after the break.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Total | |
| Jose Aldo | 26 | 8 | 5 | 159 |
| Jon Jones | 10 | 11 | 10 | 93 |
| Marius Zaromskis | 9 | 9 | 7 | 79 |
| Cain Velasquez | 5 | 4 | 6 | 43 |
| Brian Bowles | 2 | 4 | 7 | 29 |
| Junior dos Santos | 7 | 6 | 27 | |
| Mo Lawal | 3 | 2 | 2 | 23 |
| Bibiano Fernandes | 1 | 3 | ||
| Lyoto Machida | 1 | 1 | ||
| Dan Hardy | 1 | 1 |