Conor McGregor was shocked by Jose Aldo's UFC retirement, and felt he was on his way to one last shot at bantamweight gold.
McGregor and Aldo had an iconic rivalry in 2014 and 2015, which culminated in a huge world title fight at UFC 194 which the Irishman won in just 13 seconds. It was the first time that anyone other than the Brazilian had held featherweight gold after a legendary decade-long unbeaten run which cemented him as an all-time great.
And that loss wasn't ultimately definitive for Aldo's career; he immediately won the interim belt back when he defeated Frankie Edgar at UFC 200. And he was quickly elevated to undisputed after McGregor moved up to lightweight and eventually switched to boxing, before losing the title and moving down to bantamweight, where he fought for the undisputed belt as well.
But McGregor feels he had one last run to the gold in him before hanging up the gloves, despite a decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili in his final MMA bout. He has since moved on to boxing, where he has won once and drawn once with future bouts on the crossover circuit likely.
Asked if he had any thoughts on Aldo entering the Hall of Fame, McGregor told the official UFC YouTube channel that it was "well earned", before asking "Why did he retire? Was he not scheduled to fight again? I thought he was making roads towards that 135lb title and then he went boxing and all.
"I don't know, whatever the reason is, all the respect to him. A real fighter, multiple-division world title winner and contender who has been around so long. All power to him, I wish him all the best. That's the way it should be over time, you show up to fight and you get my respect."
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McGregor is currently working towards his return to action, hoping to become an unprecedented three-division champion at welterweight. He will start his journey to the third belt against Michael Chandler, with the pair coaching against one another on this season of The Ultimate Fighter.
After legendary rivalries with the likes of Aldo, Nate Diaz and Khabib Nurmagomedov, fans are excited to see the brash talking McGregor return, although he appears to be more friendly with Chandler. The pair are jumping up in weight from lightweight, where they have both already won the gold, Chandler in Bellator and McGregor in the UFC.
He has been out of action for the last two years with a broken leg which he suffered in his trilogy with Dustin Poirier, and has bulked up to the point that he likely won't compete at 155lb again. The winner of his bout with Chandler is expected to go straight in towards the top of the 170lb rankings despite neither having a particularly lengthy history at the weight.
