Jose Aldo is expected to enter the squared circle to make his professional boxing debut in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Feb. 10, multiple people with knowledge of the situation told MMA Fighting.
It’s still unclear who Aldo will face, as well as number of rounds and weight class, but the plan is to make it a professional match.
The 36-year-old veteran has been training boxing actively since before he hung up his MMA gloves, working with boxing coaches at the Brazilian Navy in Rio de Janeiro. Aldo exited MMA with a record of 31 victories and eight defeats, 17 of those wins coming by way of knockout.
The boxing event will be held at Upper Arena, Nova Uniao’s training center and usual site for Shooto Brazil cards in the city.
The former UFC and WEC featherweight champion retired from MMA after having his three-fight winning streak snapped by Merab Dvalishvili in 2022.
Even though Aldo remained under contract with the UFC, he said company president Dana White promised he would clear him to compete in any sport other than MMA.
Aldo told MMA Fighting podcast Trocação Franca in October that competing in boxing was “a possibility” as his next move.
“It was always a dream I had in my life, I never hid that from anyone,” he said at the time. “It was always a dream. But let’s see. Everybody says I’m still young, that I have a few years [left].”
Fellow Nova Uniao fighters Johnny Eduardo, Hernani Perpetuo, and Valmir Lazaro, who have all competed before in the UFC, are also expected to box on the card, MMA Fighting has learned.
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