José Aldo did not hold back in criticizing his own performance in the controversial defeat to mario bautista No. UFC 307, in October 2024. In a press conference held this Wednesday (7), the former featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg), who faces Aiemann Zahabi No. UFC 315 this Saturday (10), in Canada, admitted frustration with the lack of action in the fight and states that the current bantamweight champion (up to 61,2kg), Merab Dvalishvili, is afraid of seeing him again after a victory 'helped by the judges' in 2022.
The split decision loss to Bautista, marked by complaints from the public and questionable technical analysis, left its mark on the Brazilian. Aldo acknowledged that he underestimated his opponent and failed to impose his aggressive style, something that defined his trajectory as one of the greatest names in the history of the organization.
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“I was pissed off at myself, I felt really bad. I will never take away any credit from my opponent, but I knew myself, I was much stronger, much more skilled, much more than Mário, and I ended up like a retard in the cage accepting that. I felt bad, man. After the fight, I didn’t even want to talk about the fight because of what I did in there. I know how pissed off the fans were, the UFC, everyone. I was expecting something and nothing happened, and the referee didn’t break up that shit either, and it was a really ugly fight, and I was really pissed off, I couldn’t even watch the fight or talk about it either,” declared the fighter from Manaus.
The fight, held in Utah (USA), had moments of tension: José Aldo opened a cut on his rival with a knee in the second round, but mario bautista insisted on prolonged clinches, which generated boos from the audience.
Jose Aldo also blasted Merab Dvalishvili
J. Aldo (left) was surpassed by M. Dvalishvili (right) in the UFC 278. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
The most scathing criticism, however, was reserved for Merab Dvalishvili, who defeated him in 2022 by unanimous decision. Aldo insinuated that the Georgian avoided retaliating because he recognized the balanced fight:
“The champion is afraid to fight because he knows it was a tough fight, that he was helped by the judge. Everyone knows how capable I am, I know that because I see it in training. That’s why when I get in there I can’t act like a retard,” added the fighter.
'People's Champion' still wants to be UFC champion
At 38 years old, Aldo reinforced that he still wants the bantamweight belt. According to him, he is more 'explosive and faster' compared to the past and alludes to other fighters of the same age who have fallen off in performance.
“It seems like I’m like wine, the older I get, the better I get. More explosive and faster. So there’s no reason for me to go in there and just pretend. Choose an opponent, marry a big name, put up an ugly fight, it’s like two fat retirees, come in, take a punch and fall, like it happens. Not with me,” he concluded.
Read More about: Aiemann Zahabi, Jose aldo, mario bautista, Merab Dvalishvili, UFC, UFC 315
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