Jose Aldo Announces Retirement After Controversial Loss to Aiemann Zahabi at UFC 315

UFC bantamweight contender Aiemann Zahabi earned the biggest win of his career by defeating the legendary Jose Aldo by unanimous decision at UFC 315 in Montreal on Saturday.

What a third round it was.

Few believed Zahabi would get back to his feet after a crushing knee from Aldo nearly ended the fight. But as Aldo chased a finish in a flurry, Zahabi flipped the script—dragging the Brazilian to the canvas and unleashing brutal elbows to the forehead that swung momentum back in his favor.

Both fighters were running on fumes by the final horn, leaving the outcome to the judges' scorecards—where Zahabi emerged victorious, earning a 29-28 win via unanimous decision.

After the fight and a 14-year UFC career, along with 21 years in professional MMA, the 38-year-old Aldo left his gloves in the center of the ring, announcing his retirement.

"I just don't have it in my heart anymore. I think this is the last time you'll see me," he said after the devastating loss.

Aldo further addressed the decision on social media:

The fight was originally set to be contested at bantamweight but was moved up to featherweight at the last minute when it was apparent Aldo wouldn't make the 136-pound weight limit.

Zahabi, who is the younger brother of longtime Tristar Gym head trainer Firas Zahabi, improves his record to 13-2. He had won five straight fights entering Saturday's event, including a unanimous decision win over Pedro Munhoz in November.

Aldo, a former longtime featherweight champion who was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2023, fell to 32-10. He had previously retired in 2022 before returning to the Octagon in May 2024, and he's now 1-2 since resuming his career.

Aldo was coming off a loss to Mario Bautista by split decision at UFC 304 in October. He had defended all 10 of Bautista's takedown attempts in that fight and didn't look overmatched, showing he still can compete against up-and-coming contenders. However, he didn't have enough to get past Zahabi.

Aldo entered Saturday ranked No. 11 in the bantamweight division, while Zahabi was ranked No. 15. There was no bad blood between them leading up to their fight, as both were simply hoping to move closer to a title shot.

While Aldo is the biggest name on Zahabi's resume, a win over a former champion past his prime likely isn't enough to make the jump to title contention.

However, at 37 years old, the clock is ticking for the Canadian to climb to the top of the bantamweight division, so it can be expected that he will be seeking another big-name fight after Saturday's win.