Gaunt UFC star Jose Aldo reveals he had support from Conor McGregor after dropping down to 135lb
UFC legend Jose Aldo revealed he was overwhelmed as former rival Conor McGregor congratulated him on making bantamweight for the first time.
Aldo successfully tipped the scales at 136lbs ahead of his bantamweight debut against Marlon Moraes on Saturday night at UFC 245.
The ex-featherweight king shocked fans after announcing his move down in weight, having struggled to make the 145lbs limit.
But the 33-year-old received praise from the man who dethroned him of his title in 2015, as a gaunt Aldo weighed inside the bantamweight limit.
McGregor tweeted: “Tremendously done José!”
The Notorious scored the quickest KO in UFC title fight history having stunned Aldo with a left hand inside 13 seconds in December 2015.
Aldo has tirelessly chased a rematch since, even insisting he would move up to lightweight in order to get a crack at revenge.
But despite the bad blood, the Brazilian admitted he was touched by McGregor’s congratulatory tweet.
Aldo told TSN: “Of course I took it to heart, the great champions know what it takes to sacrifice things for us to achieve things, the other people, the other fighters only dream of so it means a lot to me that it comes from him.
“He’s a champion of two weight classes. He knows the sacrifices that I had to make and I really take the compliment, the comment to heart.”
Aldo, working with a nutritionist for the first time, insisted his dramatic weight cut to 135lbs was the “easiest” of his career - and targets a second UFC title.
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He said: “The weight cut has been the easiest I’ve had in my life. I’ve never felt that strong, that fast.
“It reignited a new Jose Aldo. The old Jose Aldo is dead. It’s a new person, give me a new goal.
“I want to continue to make history and be a legend of the sport. We’ll be the champ at 135.”
