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Conor McGregor recently weighed in on Jose Aldo returning to action at UFC 301 and questioned whether the Brazilian's retirement was a "business play" that didn't work out. McGregor notably snatched the featherweight title from Aldo at UFC 194 in Dec. 2015 via a memorable 13-second first-round knockout.
After a long and illustrious career in the UFC, Aldo left the promotion after getting outpointed by Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278 in August 2022. He pursued boxing during his time away from the octagon and racked up a 1-0-1 record. After more than a year away, Aldo is set to make his octagon return at UFC 301 against Jonathan Martinez.
The news caught many by surprise, including McGregor, who revealed that he didn't quite understand the thought process behind Aldo retiring. During a recent conversation with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, the Irishman shared his thoughts on Aldo's comeback and said:
"Look at Aldo now, great to see Jose back... I was actually taken back that he did retire when he retired. He was in contention for the f***ing title, he was in title contention from where I was looking. I’m happy to see Jose back and I wonder if it was a business play that didn’t play out for him, was he trying to press for more and then walked away and they let him?"
When Conor McGregor expressed dismay at Jose Aldo announcing his retirement
Conor McGregor and Jose Aldo shared one of the most entertaining rivalries in UFC history. Their highly anticipated featherweight title fight at UFC 194 was marked by the Irishman weaponizing his trash-talking skills to get under Aldo's skin before ultimately finishing the Brazilian within 13 seconds to become champion.
Despite their heated rivalry, it was clear that the two had immense respect for each other and were throwing fuel into the flames to sell the fight. In the aftermath, the two expressed their admiration for one another on several occasions.
After Aldo announced his retirement in 2022, McGregor wasn't happy and felt the Brazilian was close to a title shot at bantamweight. During an interview with Megan Olivi last year, he said:
"Why did he retire? Was he not scheduled to fight again? I thought he was making inroads to the 135-pound title... I don't know, whatever the reason is, all the respect to him. A real fighter, [competed] in multiple divisions, world title winner and contender and been around so long. All power to him, I wish him all the best."
Catch Conor McGregor's comments below (9:25):
