Two-time featherweight champion Jose Aldo fought out his UFC contract at UFC 301. A fight after which many fans wondered if it would be his final outing in Dana White‘s promotion, ‘Junior’ confirmed that he would be staying after registering a unanimous decision victory over 30-year-old surging contender, Jonathan Martinez.

Jose Aldo snubbed the chance to fight bantamweight great Dominick Cruz at UFC 301. He decided to take on a younger opponent because he wanted to see if he still had it in him. Well, it seems he does!

A dominating performance prompts Jose Aldo to claim he’s staying in the UFC

The first round started off with both men both men on their feet with Jose Aldo and Jonathan Martinez trading strikes. However, ‘Junior’ kept moving on the front foot and landed some significant strikes. Aldo even denied Martinez a takedown attempt. The former two-time champion landed some beautiful combinations and landed some of his signature leg kicks.

The second round started with Martinez and Jose Aldo getting into a clinch on the fence. But after the referee broke that clinch and asked both fighters to start fighting again, Aldo hit Martinez with a few wobbling strikes.

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In the final round, Jose Aldo and Jonathan Martinez embraced each other before throwing down for a final five minutes. ‘Junior’ looked in complete control throughout the fight. and seemingly overwhelmed the 30-year-old. But Martinez found success with some shots of his own. Regardless, the Hall of Famer wobbled his opponent once again, and scored his first takedown since 2014. Aldo controlled Martinez on the ground before the round came to an end with a roaring crowd backing the ‘King of Rio’.

After defeating Jonathan Martinez via unanimous decision, Jose Aldo finally revealed what his plans were next. Since it was his last fight in the current contract, fans were eager to know if he was going to stay or go. Apparently, that performance brought Aldo’s confidence back as he declared wanting to fight for the title once again and discuss terms for a new contract. Yes, ‘Junior’ has decided to remain a part of Dana White’s promotion. “I said this wasn’t going to be my last fight. I think I’m in the physique and the age that I can still fight… Maybe we can come back here and become the champion.”

Having got his return date, Conor McGregor seemed to have been tuned into the Rio de Janeiro pay-per-view event which featured his former rival Jose Aldo. However, while watching the fight, ‘The Notorious’ was left unimpressed with an instance that took place in the second round.

Conor McGregor urges referee to act fast during Aldo’s fight

While the fight between Jose Aldo and Jonathan Martinez was going on, the 30-year-old tried to nullify the former champion’s attacks and held him in a clinch on the fence. It could have been a change in the youngster’s game plan, as he was finding it hard to get his rhythm going against the Hall of Famer. However, Conor McGregor did take a liking to it.

“Referee , quicker separate,” Conor McGregor wrote in a now-deleted tweet in frustration with the referee, who took very long to separate the two fighters.

At 37 years old, Jose Aldo seems to be in tune with his fighting self as he unexpectedly delivered at UFC 301. Now, it will be exciting to see how he moves forward with his important win and how long it takes before he gets into title contention.