Jose Aldo laid gloves in the middle of the octagon to signify his retirement following the loss of a unanimous decision to Ayman Zajabi at UFC 315.
Jose Aldo is retiring
The former two-time featherweight UFC champion fought well against Zahabi and, ultimately, after finishing the opening of the two rounds, the fight ended in the final round.
Aldo sniffed blood after kneeling Canada on the canvas early in the third round. When Zahabi returned to his feet, Aldo greeted him with a head kick, which made him straight back onto the canvas. The fight seemed to be over, and Zahabi stumbled across the entire octagon before eating yet another vicious head kick from Aldo.
But somehow, miraculously, Zahabi weathered the storm and recovered incredibly quickly. At this point, Aldo’s gas tank was empty. The Brazilians were released for a while to look at the clock. In his exhaustion, Aldo fires a desperate takedown. The Canadian landed the ground and pounds inexorably, repeatedly elbowing Aldo’s forehead. This is where the fight was lost for Aldo.
Hose Aldo makes it Deciding to retire
In a postwar interview with the Octagon, Jose Aldo admitted (through his translator) that “I don’t have it in my mind anymore,” and that he “said no in my body.”
The latter could explain why the Brazilians were unable to make weight for this fight, and could not cut it down to a 135 pound bantamweight limit. At the last minute, the fight was changed to a featherweight match, and it was now being played.
Nevertheless, Aldo should be praised for his contributions to mixed martial arts. He boasts the most successful title defense in UFC featherweight history (7), and has a sparkling career, achieving a 18-game winning streak between 2006 and 2014. Nevertheless, “Father’s Time” catches up to everyone, and at age 38, Aldo is able to take pride in his achievements and hold his head high. He was competitive until the end.