Jose Aldo's coach gives status update on Floyd Mayweather fight negotiations

According to Andre Pederneiras, the manager of former UFC featherweight champion and Hall of Famer Jose Aldo, 'Junior' is close to being for a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

After a loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278, the MMA veteran hung up his 4-oz gloves with a promotional record of 13-7 and an overall MMA record of 31-8. The Brazilian fighter transitioned to boxing under the Shooto Brazil boxing banner and had his first bout on February 10th.

Jose Aldo ended up winning his pro-boxing debut against Emmanuel Zambrano in a six-round unanimous decision. After his win, 'Junior' confirmed that his team is currently in negotiations to box the 50-0 boxing legend Floyd 'Money' Mayweather.

News of a potential Mayweather vs. Aldo boxing match was confirmed by Sherdog, who interviewed the former UFC featherweight champion's coach. Here is what coach Andrew Pederneiras of Nova Uniao said:

"Negotiations are really [in the] advanced [stage]. We hope to have the contract signed before Aldo's next fight with Jeremy Stephens on April 1. We don't have a month decided yet but we already know that the fight will take place in Abu Dhabi."

Jose Aldo will meet Jeremy Stephens, who he finished via TKO at UFC on Fox 30, in his second pro-boxing bout under the Gamebred Boxing banner on April 1st. The match will take place at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and will be contested for six rounds.

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Will Jose Aldo find success in a potentially life-changing boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr.?

We have seen MMA fighters make transitions to boxing to varying degrees of success. The first high-profile fighter to make the transition was Conor McGregor, who fought none other than Floyd Mayweather Jr., himself, in a 12-round boxing match. While McGregor was able to put on an early assault, he faded through the round, leading Mayweather to find a TKO finish in the 10th round.

Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley both had unsuccessful boxing stints, losing to Jake Paul. The YouTuber-turned-boxer recently started training in comparison to the aforementioned former UFC fighters. Perhaps Jose Aldo is the only high-profile MMA fighter currently with a pro-boxing win.

His opponent, however, is not Emmanuel Zambrano or Jeremy Stephens, but the 50-0 legend, himself. This is a major step up in competition as compared to Zambrano and Stephens. Aldo has trained his entire life to use his hands and legs in combat scenarios. Having to adapt to using your hands only and think from that perspective is a major challenge, and doing so is easier said than done. A striking specialist like Conor McGregor couldn't solve the Mayweather puzzle.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been boxing all his life, and that's all he knows. Stepping into the domain of a specialist - that too, against the best in that domain - usually doesn't favor the transitioning fighter. Jose Aldo's chances of winning a boxing match against Mayweather are slim, but he stands to make major bank with the bout.