"It was always rumors of him retiring," Aspinall said on "The Diary Of A CEO" podcast. "He's putting stuff out in the media saying that he's retiring because MMA, especially at an elite level, is quiet. You hear rumors a lot. I heard rumors from people close to him that he's going to retire and that he's not living like an athlete."

Aldo moved down a weight class and fought for the UFC bantamweight title in 2020 in an unsuccessful attempt to become a two-weight champion. The former WEC king retired from MMA after his loss to Aiemann Zahabi last May, having dabbled in boxing.