Former UFC and WEC champion Jose Aldo will be making his boxing debut in early 2023. The UFC legend had his last fight in the promotion in August 2022, against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278. Aldo retired from MMA following a decision loss to Dvalishvili.
Recently, there were reports which suggested that Aldo was close to signing with Hardcore FC. He was rumored to make his boxing debut under this promotion in March 2023. The founder of Hardcore FC, Anatoliy Sulyanov recently confirmed that Aldo will be fighting on the same card as boxing champion Sergey Kovalev.
Kovalev is a multiple-time light heavyweight champion and fought Canelo Alvarez. The Russian boxer has a professional record of 35-4-1 and is coming off a decision win over Tervel Pulev. Sulyanov recently revealed that Aldo will be fighting in an upcoming boxing event under Hardcore FC. He said: “On March 18th there will be a big Hardcore Boxing event in Dubai.”
“I’m not going to tell you the names yet, but José Aldo and most likely even Sergey “Crusher” Kovalev will be on the card. Aldo will fight with 99.9 percent probability; we’re negotiating with Sergey now.”
Jose Aldo to Hardcore Boxing? 👀
Anatoliy Sulyanov, CEO of Hardcore FC: “On March 18 a big Hardcore Boxing event will take place in Dubai. I won’t name names yet, but Jose Aldo and probably even Sergey Kovalev will be on the card. Aldo will fight 99.9 percent” pic.twitter.com/acKmbsxety
— Matysek (@Matysek88) December 23, 2022
He further added that negotiation with Sergey was still going on. Aldo retired with a professional MMA record of 31-8 and has a UFC record of 13-7. The UFC legend fought some of the biggest UFC superstars like Conor McGregor, Max Holloway, Petr Yan, and Alexander Volkanovski to name a few.
Jose Aldo hinted at a boxing debut after his UFC retirement
Jose Aldo is a phenomenal striker and is considered to be one of the greatest stand-up fighters in the UFC. The former featherweight champion demonstrated his elite striking skills on many occasions inside the Octagon.
The King of Rio calls it a career 👑
Congratulations @JoseAldoJunior on a legendary run 👏 pic.twitter.com/VvRQwFV0PO
— UFC (@ufc) September 18, 2022
Aldo has always expressed his love for boxing and made a statement after he retired from UFC. In an interview with Globo Esporte, the Brazilian said: “Boxing is a possibility. It was always a dream I had in my life, I never hid that from anyone. It was always a dream.”
“I’m trying to see the best path I’ll take right now. I won’t fight MMA, that’s for sure. I thank everybody for calling me from other promotions, but I haven’t left the UFC, I remain under contract with them. I’ll see where I’ll fit.” (h/t via MMA Fighting)
A lot of UFC fighters have transitioned from MMA to boxing. Conor McGregor fought boxing legend, Floyd Mayweather, in one of the biggest combat sports events of all time. Other UFC fighters like Anderson Silva, Tyron Woodley, and Ben Askren have also tried their luck in boxing.
All of them lost to Jake Paul but only Silva has been successful and picked up some victories in the sport. Aldo is definitely one of the best strikers in the UFC and fans can expect him to have a successful career in boxing.
