“I Was Already Thinking About Retiring” – Jose Aldo on How the Navy Helped Him Stay at UFC

Competition is quite tough in any combat sport. A promotion as big and prestigious as UFC makes its fighters work hard to reach the pinnacle of their division. However, some of the best fighters too may go through a rough patch in their career. Jose Aldo experienced the same sometime back.

There are several UFC fighters of the past and present that can serve as examples. However, bantamweight fighter, Jose Aldo too, went through a career slump. Fans might be surprised to know that he even considered retirement after his back-to-back losses.

Currently, Aldo is doing great. But a while ago, he lost against Alexander Volkanovski, Marlon Moraes, and Petr Yan. This might have made him question his skills as a fighter because he considered leaving the sport. However, he went on to defeat Marlon Vera and Pedro Munhoz and got his career back on track.

Speaking about his losses, he said (h/t MMA Fighting), “I was already thinking about retiring really, I had that in mind. But after the Petr [Yan] fight, the pandemic and et cetera … those [Brazilian Navy] kids lit a fire inside me, brother.”

Aldo further said, “I have so much will to fight these days. I’ve been with the Navy for almost two years now, since the [start of the COVID-19] pandemic. Man, I’m feeling like a boy again, learning every day, changing my fighting style. That renewed me to fight again, lit the fire I needed.”

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Training in Rio de Janeiro with the Brazilian Navy seems to be paying off as Aldo seems ready to fight.

What’s next for Jose Aldo?

Jose Aldo already has a fight lined up. On December 4, he will face Rob Font in the main event. If Aldo wins this fight, it would be his third consecutive win. Back in 2011, he had won the UFC bantamweight title and successfully defended it several times. However, he lost it to Max Holloway in 2017 through TKO.

This bout is surely about to be a great one. Font and Aldo are both within the top 5 ranks of the bantamweight. Thus, a great battle is expected in the octagon.

It’s great that Aldo was able to reignite the fire within him and return with amazing fights. Are you excited to see Jose Aldo in the octagon soon? Let us know in the comments below.

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