Jose Aldo ‘Never Wanted to Leave' UFC, Will Hear Out Offer before Testing Free Agency

Jose Aldo is on the fence when it comes to free agency.

The former UFC Featherweight Champion fought what could be his final fight in the Octagon at UFC 301, an impressive decision effort over ranked contender Jonathan Martinez. Aldo finished out his promotional contract with the win and the door is now open to go elsewhere, if he so chooses.

Aldo had the option to re-sign with the UFC before his contract was up, but the Brazilian wanted to show off his skills once more to prove his worth rather than to seek out his full fighting freedom.

"The leaving in one fight on the contract was never meant to actually wipe out that contract and actually finish the contract by having that fight. The idea was actually keep a fight in the contract because I never had the desire to fight anywhere else," Aldo revealed on 'The MMA Hour'. "Fighting in the UFC was always my dream. That's it. And for being in the UFC is what I always wanted to do and I never wanted to leave. So, I wanted to show some people what I got. I show that I do have a lot to offer and now it's a new negotiation. It's a new time. We're gonna start looking at some other things. I haven't had some conversations, but [it] did show that I have a lot."

Stuck on the crossroads of where he wants to fight next, Aldo mentioned that he received a fight offer from Jake Paul to fight Neeraj Goyat on his box-office boxing card on July 20. Paul is set to headline against Mike Tyson in Netflix's first-ever combat sports show that is sure to attract a lot of eyes and of course, a lot of money.

However, out of respect for his longtime home, Aldo will first hear what the UFC has to say regarding a new deal before he re-enters the ring.

"As far as walking is concerned, I actually had a fight scheduled coming up in the Jake Paul card. He had invited me to be a part of a great show, the spectacle. It's gonna be him, fighting Mike Tyson on Netflix. But I have that, I'm gonna have to sit down and wait for what the UFC offers me. We still need to because of the love and the respect that I have for the organization, I want to listen to them. I do feel very confident in a boxing ring. I feel good doing boxing. I feel that I have things to accomplish, but I need to step back and evaluate the proposal that I get from the UFC because my dream was always to be in this organization. They have treated me so well with such a high level of respect. So, I wanna see what they can offer me.

"Ever since I started on this, we're talking about 20 years of my life that have been dedicated to this sport. I am Aldo because of what the MMA and what the UFC have given me," the former champ stated. "If I am Aldo, the person that you know— I'm here because of them."

The red-hot free agent Aldo details what else goes into making the decision of a lifetime, to carry on his UFC legacy with a final title run or to take a chance on himself and compete somewhere else altogether, not being limited as to who or how he fights.

"It's not about the money anymore," Aldo continued. "There are a lot of things that be taken into consideration, and it's it's more of what I can do and and what I can get, what I can accomplish. I think that in that fight, I was able to show a lot of things that I can do, that I'm an MMA fighter, that I'm a complete fighter. So, now the conversation is about, well, what can we show the future and and the things that we can accomplish?"

Should "The King of Rio" stay or should he go? Well, if Jose Aldo does re-sign with the promotion, three-time UFC title challenger would like to see the former champion get another crack at double-champ status at bantamweight.

“Now I’m gonna call for a Jose Aldo title shot...” Sonnen recently said on his YouTube channel. “If Sean O’Malley goes on his podcast and gets this going right away, ‘I’m gonna get rid of Merab [Dvalishvili, I’m gonna go right after Jose…’ There is a very possible chance that Jose Aldo goes right into a title shot.”

What's next for free agent Jose Aldo?

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