Why did Jose Aldo abandon leg kicks?

[MetaIIica]

Leg kicks were a huge part of his success earlier in his career, and now I don't think he threw more than 1 leg kick against Mario. Whats the deal? I rewatched Aldo vs Faber, Aldo was throwing body shot, leg kick combos, he would not do that these days.

 

[achoo42]

He hurt his leg badly a while ago:

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2715427-jose-aldo-suffered-leg-injury-prior-to-ufc-212-loss-to-max-holloway

He also started focusing on his hands by training with the Brazilian Navy boxing team. Older fighters tend to prefer to throw hands instead of kick or grapple since it's easier on the body. Same reason why Cro Cop hardly threw kicks and Hendo barely wrestled when they finally got to the UFC.

 

[13Seconds]

Fighters are generally better at defending leg kicks today than 15 years ago. TKO stoppages due to leg kicks happened more often in the past than today. Muay Thai style strikers dominating a fight with leg kicks alone also feels like a thing in the past.

Aldo is older now so the reflexes aren't the same. His feet are jacked up too.

 

[NoBiasJustMMA]

He has had leg injuries and I think he later got hit by a car when riding a bike. Basically the same reasons Cro Cop stopped kicking, too many leg and hip injuries.

 

[don't ask]

He hurt his leg badly a while ago:

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2715427-jose-aldo-suffered-leg-injury-prior-to-ufc-212-loss-to-max-holloway

He also started focusing on his hands by training with the Brazilian Navy boxing team. Older fighters tend to prefer to throw hands instead of kick or grapple since it's easier on the body.

He has had leg injuries and I think he later got hit by a car when riding a bike. Basically the same reasons Cro Cop stopped kicking, too many leg and hip injuries.

I can think of a few grapplers that abandoned grappling to throw bombs as they age. Fedor, Rampage, Henderson, Yoel come immediately to mind. I have no doubt there's a ton more.

It's wild that grapplers and kickboxers alike all get funnelled into pure boxing as they reach the ends of their careers and it's even wilder that they can continue for quite some time with a limited skillset.

 

[Vampire life]

Leg kicks were a huge part of his success earlier in his career, and now I don't think he threw more than 1 leg kick against Mario. Whats the deal? I rewatched Aldo vs Faber, Aldo was throwing body shot, leg kick combos, he would not do that these days.

Bone density decreases as you age
He doesn’t want to be like the Chris or Silva

He’s 38 , not 28

 

[TheMMAnalyst]

Plenty of knee injuries, motorcycle injury hurt his foot, joint damage from kicking so much, dangerous for you to use when you aren’t as fast/slower reflexes cause they get checked easier, they take a lot of energy and he’s got less cardio now that he’s old - just a few of the reasons.

 

[achoo42]

It's wild that grapplers and kickboxers alike all get funnelled into pure boxing as they reach the ends of their careers and it's even wilder that they can continue for quite some time with a limited skillset.

And then they end up in bareknuckle or boxing Youtubers.

 

[Westbrick]

He fucked up his foot against TKZ after that he only threw hard against Lamas who's a punching bag

 

[IDGETKTFO]

This is why Hosay abandoned leg kicks.

FIGHTER	KD	SIG. STR.	SIG. STR. %	TOTAL STR.	TD	TD %	SUB. ATT	REV.	CTRL
Jose Aldo Mario Bautista	0 0	51 of 117 49 of 142	43% 34%	65 of 139 90 of 196	0 of 0 0 of 10	--- 0%	0 0	0 0	0:00 7:15

Hosay landed 65 and Bautista landed 90.

Sauce:
http://ufcstats.com/fight-details/3d7d82fff71e395a

 

[TheBulge]

Leg kicks at a high volume don't just damage the opponent but yourself as well. Aside from checks, you're also hitting harder bones like ankles, knees and elbows. Aldo's legs have got to be jacked up at this point.

 

[DiazSlap]

Because his leg is already compromised…

 

[IDGETKTFO]

Because his leg is already compromised…

It's crazy he literally didn't land a single leg kick. Its like he forgot how to leg kick. How do you go from a devastating leg kicker in WEC to a UFC fighter that doesn't even seem to know what a leg kick is?
And these clowns think he should have won..........

 

[dildos]

Bone density decreases as you age
He doesn’t want to be like the Chris or Silva

He’s 38 , not 28

I heard he is 40.

 

[Doctor Grudge]

he had surgeries on his legs and probably can't kick that well.

 

[yodog]

IDK about Aldo, but age and throwing heavy kicks don't combine well even if you're a small man.