Jose Aldo is leaving all his options open as he returns from retirement against Jonathan Martinez at UFC 301.

Aldo (31-8 MMA, 13-7 UFC), a UFC Hall of Famer and former UFC/WEC featherweight champion, will end his retirement from MMA competition less than 20 months after his previously declared final fight, which was a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 278 in August 2020.

Many questioned why Aldo, 37, would return to MMA after hanging up the gloves and subsequently competing in a pair of boxing matches, which he said was much easier to train for in terms of physical toll. The reasons are twofold, with the most prominent being his refreshed energy toward stepping back into the octagon.

“I think I needed a break for my mind and my body,” Aldo told MMA Junkie on Wednesday through an interpreter. “Just due to the amount of demand I put on myself and the tole that it had taken on me training for the past 20 years. I found a discipline I could focus on which was boxing, and I did that for a while and I was able to kind of recover from all the pressure and everything else.

“Wanting to be the champion and every fight in there, the tole and the demand I put on myself (was significant). Now I feel like I’ve done that, and I’m able to come back.”

The second element of Aldo’s return is to finish up some business. He confirmed the clash with Martinez (19-4 MMA, 10-3 UFC), which serves as the bantamweight bout of the May 4 card at Rio Arena in Rio de Janeiro (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+), will mark the final fight on his current UFC contract.

Aldo said he wants to see what opportunities are available to him after this fight. He was rumored for a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather this past year that didn’t materialize, and although he’s not certain that particular pairing will come around, he sees some marquee possibilities inside the ring.

“That’s basically what I told the UFC a couple months ago: I want to do this fight, see where I’m at, see how I do, see how I perform and then I can make a decision,” Aldo said. “I’m looking at maybe a big boxing fight maybe somewhere down the line later this year. But we’ll revisit that with the UFC once this fight is done with Jonathan Martinez.

“That fight with Floyd Mayweather was basically all set and done. Ali (Abdelaziz) was the one that was negotiating that and I don’t really know what happened and it ended up not panning out for us to fight in Saudi Arabia. But there’s a big event on Netflix later this year (with Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson), and hopefully, I can get on that. But we’ll have to see. There’s a lot of options floating.”

Depending on his performance, Aldo didn’t rule out the possibility of signing a new UFC deal and making another run at the bantamweight title. He said he still thinks he’s capable holding gold, but understands that idea doesn’t even matter if he doesn’t get his hand raised at UFC 301.

Aldo also verified reports he was originally offered a matchup with Dominick Cruz in his hometown. The matchup of former UFC and WEC titleholders has been a dream for years, but it has never come to fruition. Aldo admits he would’ve loved to finally make it happen, but the shift to a lesser-known foe in Martinez, who is an honorable mention in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings, didn’t shake his focus.

There’s a lot at stake for Aldo at UFC 301 in terms of accumulating leverage on his side moving forward, and that reality is not lost on him as he revs up for fight night.

“Obviously it would’ve been good for me, for Dominick, for all the fans and the media who had been asking for this fight for such a long time,” Aldo said. “There’s a lot of history around a fight between myself and Dominick, but Jonathan Martinez is a very tough opponent and what really matters to me is I look at every fight like I’m fighting the best and I’m fighting the biggest challenge. That hasn’t changed.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 301.

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Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has a trial date as he faces a handful of charges, including attempted murder.

The trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 9 in Santa Clara County (Calif.) court, Judge Elizabeth C. Petersen ruled during a trial setting Wednesday. Velasquez was present at the hearing and was represented by attorney Renee Hessling.

Hessling asked for the trial setting to be rescheduled on the basis her recently acquired subpoena evidence was incomplete. District attorney representative Aaron French pushed back, pointing to the several trial-setting continuances over the past year and the alleged victim’s eagerness to progress the legal proceedings.

Judge Petersen ultimately decided a trial date should be put on the books.

A trial readiness hearing is scheduled for June 26. Motions must be filed by Aug. 12 and completed by Aug. 26. Witness lists must be submitted by Sept. 4.

Velasquez’s arrest came after he allegedly pursued and shot at a man, Harry Goularte, accused of molesting Velasquez’s four-year-old son at a daycare. Velasquez allegedly chased a car carrying Goularte and family members during a high-speed chase with a bullet striking Goularte’s stepfather causing injury.

Goularte faces one count of lewd acts with a child and currently awaits a trial setting hearing of his own in July.

Velasquez spent nearly nine months incarcerated before he was granted $1 million bail with stipulations, including GPS surveillance and TBI treatment. He has been permitted to travel for professional wrestling events, to corner AKA teammates in Bellator and UFC fights, and make appearances.

Velasquez, 41, faces charges of attempted murder (one count), shooting at a motor vehicle or aircraft (one count), assault with a firearm (three counts), assault with a deadly weapon (three counts), willfully discharging a firearm from a vehicle (one count) and carrying a loaded firearm with intent to commit a felony (one count). Velasquez has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

If found guilty of attempted murder, Velasquez faces a minimum of 20 years and up to life in prison, according to the California penal code. He faces additional time if found guilty of other counts.