Jose Aldo's coach indicates retirement off table, pushes title unifier for February or March

Jose Aldo’s longtime coach said his charge would like to pursue other interests but can’t leave MMA because the UFC won’t allow it.

Rather than fight them, he said, the interim featherweight champ will go back to work.

“Aldo wants to do the other things, but in the conversations we had (with the UFC), it became clear that they’re not going to let him do that,” Andre Pederneiras today told Brazilian MMA outlet Combate. “There’s nothing we can do. We have to fight.”

Aldo, the No. 2 ranked fighter in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA featherweight rankings, previously indicated the opposite. He said he would hang up his gloves and pursue another sport rather than fight for his longtime promoter.

After a contentious back-and-forth in the press, he met with the UFC this past month in Las Vegas and addressed his grievances. He reported a positive dialogue but offered few details on the issues at hand.

Despite acknowledging his contractual status, he said he couldn’t see himself fighting again for the UFC, which denied him a title unifier in favor of booking undisputed champ and No. 1 featherweight Conor McGregor (20-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) in a lightweight title fight against lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez (28-4 MMA, 3-1 UFC) at UFC 205.

“I always had my mind made up,” Aldo told MMAjunkie. “When I said something, it was never a bluff. I have an idea in my head and it’s what I always wanted. So … it’s what we talked about. There was no offer, nothing to think. I just gave my point of view. The esteem that I have for them and that they have for me is cool, but I think we need to go our own ways.”

Now, Pederneiras is indicating a change of heart for Aldo – or at least an acceptance of the situation. The coach said they would wait for the results of an upcoming featherweight bout between No. 10-ranked Anthony Pettis (19-5 MMA, 6-4 UFC) and No. 3 Max Holloway (16-3 MMA, 12-3) at UFC 206, as well as McGregor’s next move. The Irish champ has promised a massive announcement at the conclusion of his superfight.

“I don’t know what Conor’s decision will be, but I think between February and March will be a good date,” Pederneiras said.

One condition remains unchanged for Team Aldo – the interim champ’s next fight must be for the undisputed belt.

“If he goes back to fight, he will only fight to unify the title, independent of who it’s against,” Pederneiras said. “Aldo will accept no other fight unless it’s to unify the title.”

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