Jose Aldo is widely regarded as the greatest featherweight fighter in MMA history.
The Brazilian legend enjoyed a decade of dominance before Conor McGregor knocked him out in 13 seconds at UFC 194 in December 2015.
Jose Aldo bounced back to become a two-time UFC featherweight champion before moving down to bantamweight, where he suffered a controversial split decision loss to Mario Bautista in his most recent outing at UFC 307 last October.
In his absence, Max Holloway, Alexander Volkanovski, and Ilia Topuria have all entered the UFC featherweight GOAT conversation – but there’s a promotional newcomer who wants to prove he’s the greatest 145lb fighter of all time.
Jose Aldo called out by Patricio Pitbull
Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire is set to make his company debut at UFC 314 on April 12.
The former three-time Bellator featherweight champion, who also won a title at lightweight, will square off against long-time contender Yair Rodriguez at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, next weekend.
Meanwhile, Aldo is slated to face George St-Pierre’s training partner, Aiemann Zahabi, at UFC 315 on May 10.
A fight between Freire and Aldo doesn’t make sense until you hear why the UFC newbie wants it.
“For Aldo and people in the UFC, everybody is sure he’s the best featherweight of all time,” Pitbull told MMA Fighting.
“But some people that know fighting [say], ‘There’s also Patricio, and maybe he could be fighting for the title of who’s the greatest.’ Anyway, I think the best way to settle this would be in a fight.
“We know it wouldn’t determine who was the best or who has done more, but in a fight, we would at least have an answer, we’d know who catches fire first, and the winner would leave a great mark.
“I don’t have this desire of fighting Aldo, but it would be a good fight to make.”
Patrício Pitbull open to weight changes
Pitbull insists that weight classes won’t stop him from getting the UFC fights he really wants.
The 37-year-old says fans can expect to see him compete as low as bantamweight and as high as welterweight during his upcoming run in MMA’s premier promotion.
“Depending on the challenge, we’d do it,” Pitbull added when asked about potentially changing divisions.
“From 135 to 170, depending on who the opponent is, we’re in. Even 170, depending on the fighter’s history. If it’s someone too young and with no history, [no, but] if he has a history similar to mine, and it’s a bit older like me, we’d go for it.”
