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News surfaced today that Jose Aldo has informed the UFC of his retirement from mixed martial arts, causing the MMA world to share their appreciation for the legendary figure.
The Brazilian is one of the most iconic fighters to ever step foot into the octagon and many are sad to see him go. He bowed out of the sport with a record of 31-8, and although his final fight was a losing effort against Merab Dvalishvili, he has achieved numerous accolades and should be proud of a wonderful career in the sport.
Despite having one bout left on his contract, the 36-year-old has come to terms with his decision and will undoubtedly be missed.
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Fans have understandably rushed to share their immediate thoughts on the reports, with a large majority of supporters gathering to send the icon positive messages and wish him well in the future. One fan took to Twitter to wish the former UFC featherweight champion:
"Long live the king"
Alongside the positive send-off Aldo received from fans, many other followers insisted that his final fight shouldn't have come against Merab Dvalishvili and that the UFC made a mistake by not booking him to face fellow veteran Dominick Cruz.
Despite being 3-1 in his last four outings, Aldo was thought to be chasing a shot at the bantamweight throne, but considering his most recent loss and the strength of the 135-pound division, he ultimately chose to retire from MMA.
Jose Aldo's career in the UFC
While casual MMA fans will remember him for his knockout loss to Conor McGregor, there are countless others who can look back and applaud everything Jose Aldo has achieved in the sport.
Following his unbeaten 8-0 run with WEC, the Brazilian-native was named the inaugural UFC featherweight champion after the promotion's merger, which began another impressive seven-fight win-streak.
Jose Aldo had a nine-year undefeated spell in mixed martial arts spanning from 2006 to 2015. This epic run saw him earn himself a fighter of the year award for 2014 and a fight of the year award—for his war against Chad Mendes at UFC 179—at the World MMA Awards.
'The King of Rio' departed the sport as one of the most memorable fighters to ever compete in MMA and will be remembered by the martial arts community for years to come.
