Former Featherweight Champ Sheds Light On Decisive Retirement At UFC 315

It appears José Aldo is completely walking away from ever fighting again in all capacities following his second retirement a couple of weeks ago. 

Jose Aldo Lays Down gloves After All-Out war with Aiemann Zahabi

Competing in his 23rd overall bout in the promotion, Jose Aldo faced off with the rising Aiemann Zahabi in Canada at UFC 315. Arriving back in the company after a short-lived hiatus away from mixed martial arts, the Brazilian legend returned to his old stomping grounds in Brazil at UFC 301, where he out-struck Jonathan Martinez to a unanimous decision win. His momentum was swiftly shot down, however, when he was smothered and out grappled by a streaking Mario Bautista, losing to the American via a razor-thin split decision. 

For the hometown hero, Zahabi has been unblemished since 2019, having won six straight fights since then. His resume in this time stretch includes victories over Ultimate Fighter champion Ricky Turcios, the undefeated Javid Basharat, and top bantamweight standout Pedro Munhoz.

Jose Aldo Runs Into Buzzsaw

Taking the first round with his patient and experienced Muay Thai, Jose Aldo controlled the pace of the fight in the early instances before Zahabi began to take charge in the second. After stunning the Canadian with a mouth-dropping head kick in the third, it appeared like “Junior” was poised to collect another knockout triumph.

However, Zahabi, reversing an unexpected takedown from the Brazilian, managed to get on top of Aldo and pummel him with vicious elbows, ending the fight on top to score the unanimous decision win.

Jose Aldo Officially Retires From Fighting

Suffering his second defeat in a row, the former featherweight king laid down his gloves in the middle of the Octagon, formally announcing his departure from mixed martial arts. For his final appearance in the UFC, the crowd rightfully hailed the combat sports icon with thunderous applause and cheers, sending off Aldo in glorious fashion into the sunset. 

While the occasion was a momentous one for the once pound-for-pound greatest, some fans and pundits were left skeptical if Aldo was actually done with competition, as this wasn’t the first time that he had retired, doing so once before at UFC 278. He then opted to take three profitable boxing contests over the next two years, one being against previous UFC adversary Jeremy Stephens before returning to the company.

In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, though, Jose Aldo was quick to clear up any concerns or questions surrounding his retirement, stating that his time as a fighter has come to a definitive conclusion.