Jose Aldo turned down UFC Fortaleza headliner because five rounds are hard AF

Why work for 25 minutes when you only need to show up for 15?

I guess that’s what Jose Aldo was thinking when promotion president, Dana White, asked him to headline the upcoming UFC Fortaleza mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+, scheduled for Feb. 2 inside Centro de Formacao Olimpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, Brazil.

In addition, an extra two rounds means an extra 10 minutes of getting punched in the head.

“I agree 100 percent (Aldo should be the main event),” White MMA Junkie at the UFC 232 press conference. “(Aldo) wanted to be the co-main event. He didn’t want to fight five rounds – he wanted three. That should be the main event, five rounds – that should be the fight. But he said, ‘I want a three-round fight,’ and you don’t say no to Jose Aldo.”

Without pay-per-view (PPV) points or a championship title on the line, a five-round headliner sounds like more trouble than it’s worth. Particularly against a dangerous fighter like Renato Moicano, who meets Junior at the ESPN+ extravaganza.

Aldo (27-4) snapped a two-fight losing streak by stopping Jeremy Stephens at the UFC on FOX 30 event last July. Once considered the greatest featherweight in the entire sport, the 32 year-old Brazilian is just 2-3 over his last five, getting finished in all three losses.

Are “Junior’s” best days behind him?