RIO DE JANEIRO -- Jose Aldo’s run as a Venum fighter could end this month, and he’s currently in negotiations with two other apparel brands.
Aldo initially turned down an offer from Reebok to continue with Venum, but the lack of exposure on fight night could cause the end of his sponsorship deal. Speaking with the media on Monday, Aldo’s coach and manager Andre Pederneiras confirmed they are in negotiation with Reebok, but are also in talks with a third company.
"Actually, we’re still under contract with Venum," Pederneiras said. "Are we in negotiation with Reebok? Ever since they signed with the UFC. Not only with them, but also with a third one. We’re going to sit and talk with everyone to see what’s best for Aldo."
Aldo will wear a Reebok kit for the first time when he faces Conor McGregor at UFC 194 on Dec. 12. Pederneiras, who said in June that Aldo was "losing a lot" of money with the Reebok deal, said the UFC featherweight champion hasn’t lost that much after all.
"Honestly, it changes nothing for Aldo," he said. "He lost those sponsors that pay to appear on fight night, but those monthly ones, that pay all year long, nobody left."
"Scarface" and "The Notorious" were initially slated to meet in July, but Aldo was forced out of the bout with a rib injury. Aldo started his training camp a month ago, and has just started to work harder.
"The first month was to build the base, and today (Monday) he really started to work hard," Pederneiras said. "Now it’s countdown to fight night."
Aldo’s team had the chance to see new things in McGregor’s game after he pulled out of UFC 189. Chad Mendes replaced the champion and fought McGregor for an interim belt, and was able to put McGregor on his back a few times during the fight. Aldo’s strategy and training hasn’t changed much, claims Pederneiras.
"We had already studied him a lot for the first fight," he said. "The injury happened two or three weeks before the fight, and we were ready for the fight, but unfortunately he broke his rib. We are doing what we were doing before. It’s the same thing, except for some few details."
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