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José Aldo turned back the clocks one more time with a unanimous decision win over Jonathan Martinez in what could be his final fight with the promotion at UFC 301.
UFC News @UFCNews
<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/UFC301?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#UFC301</a> Official Result: José Aldo (30-27, 30-27, 30-27 | <a href=”https://twitter.com/josealdojunior?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@josealdojunior</a>) defeats Jonathan Martinez by Unanimous Decision<br><br>Results, Interviews & More ➡️ <a href=”https://t.co/JWamV7EESN”>https://t.co/JWamV7EESN</a>
Aldo might be 37 years old but you wouldn’t have known that to watch him in the first round. He established that he meant business in the opening round, stinging Martinez with multiple right hands.
The momentum kept going for Aldo in the second round. He neutralized Martinez’s kicking game with smart boxing and movement that gave him a crucial advantage in a three-round fight.
What was supposed to be a coronation of Martinez as an up-and-coming contender turned into a full-blown celebration of Aldo’s longevity in the third round. He landed heavy shots and ended the final round on top to put the finishing touches on a legendary performance.
Martinez had nothing but respect for the legend after the bout:
Aldo initially announced his retirement in September 2022 coming off a loss to Merab Dvalishvili. However, he decided to make at least one more walk to the Octagon with just one fight remaining on his UFC contract at 37 years old.
Though this might be the end of seeing him compete under the UFC banner, he hasn’t closed the door to competing in other capacities.
“We have a lot of offers,” Aldo said, per Shakiel Mahjouri of CBS Sports. “We could have a boxing match lined up pretty quickly if we wanted to do that. I told them, ‘Let’s wait. Let me go in there and put on a performance. We’ll talk after that to see if we’ll renew a deal or not.'”
Aldo boxed three times in 2023 going 1-0-1. One of the appearances in the ring was an exhibition.
If this is the end, Aldo can retire from the sport knowing that he put together a legendary resume. He was already inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2023 and was a dominant featherweight champion with a title streak that went back to WEC before the division was added to the UFC.
He was one of the organization’s first major stars in the sub-155-pound weight classes and the win works as a final ode to his star power to walk away with one more win in front of a raucous Brazilian crowd in Rio de Janeiro.
