It took walking through the fire of Jeremy Stephens' haymakers to get there, but former featherweight king Jose Aldo's first-round knockout on Saturday -- his first since 2013 -- proved equally emotional and sweet.

The reaction from Aldo (27-4) after the bout at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary said it all. Fresh off a pair of knockout defeats to current 145-pound champion Max Holloway, the Brazilian legend collapsed to his knees amid a flurry of tears after finishing the rugged Stephens (28-15) with hammer punches on the ground in the co-main event of UFC on Fox 30.

Aldo, 31, who ran off an unbeaten streak of nearly 10 years until he lost his title to via 13-second knockout to Conor McGregor in 2015, briefly left the cage to hug his wife before returning to smile and dance his way through his name being announced as the winner.

"The champion is back," Aldo said. "I just have to keep it up."

As weird as it was to see Aldo fight off pay-per-view, it was just as eye-opening to realize that the fight also represented his first non-title bout in his 12-fight UFC run which began in 2011 when the promotion absorbed the WEC's featherweight class and named Aldo its first champion.

Can't get enough UFC? Subscribe to my podcast In This Corner with Brian Campbell where I break down everything you need to know in the Octagon.

There was fear entering Saturday that Aldo might never be the same after dropping three of his last four bouts, including all three by knockout. But like his recent losses to Holloway, he was willing to go out on his shield if need be against Stephens and never backed down despite being tagged early with power shots as Stephens proved success in turning the fight into a brawl.

Stephens got off to an early start with outside leg kicks and knees to the body. But the action heated up when he rocked Aldo with a right hand and, after adding another two-punch combo, staggered Aldo with a clean right uppercut that gave the feeling he was ready to be finished.

To his credit, Aldo kept pushing forward and throwing counter shots, including one that produced a cut below the right eye of Stephens. Over time, it suddenly appeared as if Stephens was slowing down and wilting a bit as Aldo powered forward despite having been lit up so cleanly just moments earlier.

The fight changed for good late in the round when Aldo landed a two-punch combination downstairs, with a vicious left hook to the liver dropping Stephens as he openly winced in pain. Aldo swarmed with hammer shots and short punches until referee Yves Lavigne finally stepped in at 4:19 to wave off the fight.

"I was a little bit worried to lose the fight but I was practicing a lot and excited to be here so I was happy to pull through," Aldo said.

The loss for Stephens snapped an impressive (and violent) three-fight win streak in which the longtime brawler began to emerge as a sleeper title contender.