Dana White is wishing Jose Aldo a happy retirement.
After 11 years with the UFC, former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo has decided to hang up his gloves. Although he has not officially announced it himself, Aldo has walked away from the sport of MMA following his last loss. Reports of the news, along with Aldo’s removal from the rankings confirm that the 36-year-old is done with the UFC.
Dana White reflects on his relationship with Jose Aldo
Aldo was the UFC featherweight champion from 2011 to 2015. Before that he held the WEC title for two years. Aldo is in the conversation for greatest featherweight fighter ever and is said to have single-handedly put the division on the map when first introduced to the UFC. Now that his days with the organization are through, president Dana White is reflecting on his relationship with Aldo.
“We love him, man, this will always be his house I told them if you ever need anything we’re here,” White said at the DWCS press conference. “If you ever want to go to an event this is always your house and this is the guy that, you know, from the WEC to the UFC, helped build the sport, this brand, and Brazil for us so we love him and we always will. He’s made a great life for himself down there too and done some great things and made a lot of money and I couldn’t be happier for him and his family.”
Aldo seemed unstoppable in his days with WEC and his early days with the UFC. It wasn’t until his run-in with Conor McGregor that things began to head south. He tried to reignite his career by making a move to bantamweight in 2019 and found some success but has not been able to retain a title.
After three wins in a row at bantamweight against very tough opponents, Aldo will go out on a loss. His last bout was a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili. The timing of the retirement comes as a bit of a surprise as the UFC will be returning to Brazil in January for the first time since the pandemic and many thought Aldo could be a great addition to that event. Instead, Aldo will be spending time with family and perhaps looking into different fighting or business opportunities.
