Jose Aldo Responds To Brian Ortega’s ‘Let’s Start Negotiating’ Callout
Former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo turned back the clock once again by finishing Renato Moicano (watch it) in the co-main event of last night’s (Sat., Feb. 2, 2019) UFC on ESPN+ 2 from Fortaleza, Brazil.
The fight was a throwback to even Aldo’s WEC days where he ran through challengers with ruthless efficiency and ease. It was also his second straight win predicated mainly on body shots after he blew through Jeremy Stephens in his last fight. After the victory, Aldo predictably received a large
Current champion Max Holloway, who beat Aldo twice, offered praise to Aldo in a respectful acknowledgment. Conor McGregor also chimed in, although he didn’t necessarily cite Aldo by name. But the one man who Aldo could certainly be on a collision course with next, top featherweight Brian Ortega, wasn’t as respectful.
Ortega released a short-but-sweet tweet after the bout stating it was simply time to ‘start negotiating’:
Ready For The Challenge
Apparently, Aldo is on board, although he didn’t appear all too focused on Ortega specifically. Still, he revealed at the post-fight press conference (via MMA Fighting) that he was ready to fight any top featherweight, and Ortega is at the top:
“Of course,” Aldo said. “Anyone here who is well-ranked would be a great fight. I put about 15 names in front of Dana (White) and asked him what was the real situation, … so I gave him a list of names and all those in that list, I’d like to face them someday.”
Aldo is looking to potentially return at May’s UFC 237 pay-per-view event from Curitiba, Brazil. It’s a clearcut choice for the ‘King of Rio’ to come back to for his next fight, and there isn’t a better opponent for him right now than ‘T-City.’ The winner would arguably be in line for the next featherweight title shot, yet both have been brutally finished by Holloway.
That’s how dominant ‘Blessed’ is right now, so no matter who would win a prospective Ortega vs. Aldo bout, each man would have much work to do. Regardless, it’s just the fight to make. Expect it to most likely become official soon.
