- Jose Aldo will officially be a UFC Hall of Famer this summer
- The King of Rio is the first Brazilian to be inducted in the promotion’s Hall of Fame
The widely-regarded greatest featherweight MMA fighter of all time, Jose Aldo will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer, the promotion announced. Aldo is the first Brazilian fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
Well-deserved recognition
Aldo was cageside at UFC 283 alongside his longtime coach Andre Pederneiras, manager Ed Soares and wife Vivianne (Perreira) when the UFC broke the news via a video presentation inside the Jeunesse Arena in Brazil. The video package was also played for non-live audiences during the UFC 283 broadcast.
It was easy to see that “The King of Rio” was moved upon hearing the announcement that he will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame this year. Aldo’s tears were starting to build up as he responded to his hometown crowd’s applaud.
Watch the epic moment below:
Long live the King of Rio! 👑
What a moment for the soon to be Hall of Famer, 🇧🇷 @JoseAldoJunior! #UFC283 pic.twitter.com/IGaGekA0pK
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) January 22, 2023
Sharing his thoughts in the wonderful moment backstage with ESPN MMA, Aldo said:
“It was a great joy to receive this news here in Rio, my town, to be the first Brazilian to be inducted in the Hall of Fame. It’s a great honor and acknowledgment… I have no idea [about my impact on the sport]. It was wonderful to see the response from everyone. But I think it’s really a result of many years of hard work. It’s just wonderful to see the impact and hear their words.”
What Aldo has contributed to the sport of MMA is indeed hard to put into words but UFC president Dana White tried to do in a news release (h/t MMA Junkie).
“Jose Aldo is the greatest featherweight of all time,” White said. “From WEC to UFC, Jose helped us build the sport of MMA and UFC as a brand, as well as change the perception of the smaller weight classes and what they could accomplish inside the octagon. It will be an honor to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer.”
Rio only has one King
Arguably, Aldo was the most celebrated Brazilian MMA fighter in history and it was only fitting that he is hailed as “King of Rio.”
Aldo undoubtedly earned his stripes in the sport, having been a professional fighter since 2004. He first made great strides in WEC by becoming the promotion’s featherweight champion. He ultimately reached the pinnacle of his illustrious MMA career with the UFC by becoming its first featherweight champion in 2011 following a decision win over Mark Hominick.
Aldo went on and defended his title six times, beating the best featherweights of his era, including Frankie Edgar, Chad Mendes, and Chan Sung Jung.
After the devastating loss to Conor McGregor at UFC 194 in 2015, Aldo had his ups and downs in the featherweight division which prompted him to drop down to bantamweight. He went 3-3 as a bantamweight but decided to call it quits after a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278 this past August. The UFC wanted to give Aldo a proper farewell fight at UFC 283 but the Brazilian turned it down.
Aldo officially retired in MMA with a 31-8 record and as a true legend of the sport. However, he is keen on trying his luck in boxing as he is now set to make his boxing debut next month.
