Wanderlei Silva invites Jose Aldo to fight in Rizin

While interim UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo is currently still under contract with the UFC, the offers have begun to pour in for the former featherweight kingpin to jump to other promotions.

After it was revealed that Conor McGregor would hold onto his UFC featherweight championship despite moving up to lightweight to fight Eddie Alvarez in the main event of UFC 205 in New York, Aldo requested the UFC release him from his contract.

Despite UFC President Dana White stating that the promotion would not release him from his contract, but would be willing to work to get him a fight at UFC 205, Aldo has remained adamant that he wants to be released from his contract so he can retire from MMA and move to another sport entirely.

Since then, former Bellator MMA champion Patricio Freire has offered Aldo a fight under the Bellator MMA banner. Now, MMA legend Wanderlei Silva has reached out to Aldo via a social media video to invite the former featherweight kingpin to fight under the Rizin banner:

“It saddens me to see someone so young and with so much potential like Aldo having his will to fight being thrown away. Aldo, I am here to tell you that I am with you. I always respected your attitude as a fighter and your team.
I want to tell you that, as someone who represents Rizin, the doors are open. I want to invite you to fight in Japan, where you’ll be respected and be put in your place. Me, as a Rizin ambassador here in Brazil, want to invite you to come with me to Japan and make history there. There you’ll have the respect you deserve, my champion.
In this promotion, the same you want to leave from, they took my will to fight, I know what you are going through, but there in Japan I am being treated as a samurai, as a champion that I am, and having the respect that I deserve, and the respect that you also deserve.
Aldo, come with me to fight in Japan. Rizin has open doors for you. As a Rizin ambassador I am inviting you. Come, because you’ll be well treated, as you deserve, my champion.
God bless you, today and always, “we are always Aldo”, the best of all time.”