Jose Aldo isn’t too far away from fighting for the title again.
After two years away, the former UFC Featherweight Champion returned to active competition like he never skipped a beat. Aldo, 37, would put on an absolute striking clinic on streaking contender Jonathan Martinez last weekend at UFC 301. The unanimous decision effort showed Aldo still belongs among the best bantamweights on the planet.
Hear Sonnen Out…
With a potential top-10 ranking by his name later this week, who knows what the future holds for “The King of Rio” following his now-completed contract with the UFC. Former title challenger and new hall-of-fame inductee Chael Sonnen says Aldo’s ceiling could be as high as a title fight with “Suga” Sean O’Malley.
“Now I’m gonna call for a Jose Aldo title shot,” Sonnen started off saying on his YouTube channel. “You’re gonna give me a hard time, I understand that. And if you happen to follow the ESPN post-show, you also realize I stole that idea from Brett Okamoto. But, if Sean O’Malley goes on his podcast and gets this going right away, ‘I’m gonna get rid of Merab, I’m gonna go right after Jose…’ There is a very possible chance that Jose Aldo goes right into a title shot.”
Merab Dvalishvili is currently the #1 contender in the bantamweight division after defeating three former champions back-to-back, which includes a decision win over the ageless Aldo. While “The Machine” is almost undoubtedly next for Sean O’Malley, it’s hard to picture a better clash of styles than what we have with O’Malley vs. Aldo.
“It’s Brand New And It’s Fresh,” Sonnen Says Of The Matchup
O’Malley’s slick striking skills saw him become the new UFC Bantamweight Champion last year with a TKO win over Aljamain Sterling with “Suga” following it up with sweet revenge over Marlon “Chito” Vera at UFC 299, a total domination on the feet. Aldo’s got some of the best hands in the division, especially after some success in the boxing ring in his recent time away from the Octagon.
Sonnen reckons the fantasy fight between O’Malley and Aldo isn’t that at all, as we’ve seen crazier fights made into reality in the past.
“Now we’re also drunk on the excitement ride. It’s brand new and it’s fresh,” Sonnen said of O’Malley vs. Aldo. “I understand those things, but I could give you examples. Dan Henderson vs. Michael Bisping. Dan Henderson’s last fight on his contract. Dana White went, ‘Give him another fight’ and it was a world title fight. So, you will find times in history where an older guy came back and he did something very impressive. Randy Couture, Daniel Cormier— Daniel fought till 41, pushing 42. Fedor [Emelianenko], let’s just do this, play this game. Stipe Miocic is going through it right now.”
Aldo Still ‘Sharp’ And ‘Crisp’ As Ever At 37
When it comes to Aldo, who turns 38 in September, Sonnen thinks the doubted Brazilian has more left to give in the UFC after his performance against Jonathan Martinez.
“You counted him out just because of his age– you didn’t count him out for anything else,” Sonnen said of Aldo’s return at UFC 301. “You didn’t count him out because you didn’t think he was great or he didn’t work hard, didn’t have the right training, didn’t have the right experience. It was just [the narrative] father time came and got him. you will not give me one of those guys that exceeded expectations. That was a striker. Jose Aldo only struck tonight. Did they ever go to the canvas? If they did, it was so quick that I don’t even remember it. He outstruck a younger Jonathan Martinez and he did it for 15 minutes. Not to mention he was sharp. Not to mention he was crisp.”
Aldo’s Stance On The Matter
As it so turns out, Jose Aldo likes the idea of skipping the bantamweight line of contenders for a legacy fight with Sean O’Malley.
Could Jose Aldo "skip the line" for a title shot against Sean O'Malley? 👀 #UFC301 pic.twitter.com/KELOq5snl6
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) May 5, 2024
Entering the final chapter of his already illustrious career, will we see the former champ Jose Aldo make it back to title contention?
