Jose Aldo wants to leave UFC and become a professional boxer

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight titleholder Jose Aldo has pretty much done everything he wants to do in mixed martial arts (MMA), and is now ready to focus on new endeavors.

Like professional boxing.

While UFC fighters have long desired to compete in “the sweet science,” reigning 155-pound champion Conor McGregor made it a reality by facing Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a high-profile “Money Fight” last weekend in Las Vegas.

Now, Aldo wants his turn.

"He’s training boxing because he has this dream of competing in professional boxing,” coach Andre Pederneiras told MMA Fighting. "If it was up to him, he’d fight all of his UFC fights (left on the contract) in three months and go box. He wants to box professionally.”

To fight that many times may require him to do this.

Aldo (26-3) coughed up his featherweight strap when McGregor laid him out at UFC 194. Since then. “Junior” has gone 1-1, outpointing Frankie Edgar at UFC 200 before getting finished by Max Holloway at UFC 212.

Whether or not the 30-year-old Brazilian has a future as a pugilist remains to be seen.