Former UFC light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones will be returning to the octagon after a three-year-long lay-off. Jon Jones’ return to the octagon will be up against Ciryl Gane at heavyweight. Jones is often considered many by the greatest fighter of all time with a record of 26-1 in his MMA career and 14 title defenses.
Jon Jones became the youngest UFC world champion at the age of 23 years in 2011 after defeating Shogun Rua via KO/TKO. Since then, Jones has made a legendary run as a champion, successfully defending his title against some of the best fighters in the world.
With a physique believed by experts to be god-gifted for fighting, and an IQ that is second to none inside the octagon, it has always been believed that Jon Jones was sent on earth to be the best fighter ever. With vicious and dominant wins over most of his opponents, there have been very few fighters who have made Jones struggle inside the octagon.
Jon Jones’ recent victory came over Dominick Reyes in 2020 at UFC 247 via decision while defending the light heavyweight championship. Jones will make his return to the Octagon at UFC 285 to take on the former interim heavyweight champion, Ciryl Gane.
Every time Jon Jones got into trouble inside the UFC Octagon
No matter how strong a force Jones is, there always have been fighters with the power and technique to surprise the former champion. In 2011, light heavyweight and middleweight legend, Lyoto Machida made his way up the rankings to challenge Jones for the championship.
Initially competitive, Machida kept Jon on his foot and surprised him with some great slip punches. Machida’s overall game plan was to avoid takedowns, however, Jones’ adaptive fighting style helped him catch Machida with his elbow. Using his reach and longer limbs, Jones hit the Brazilian with some knees and caught him in a stand-up guillotine to win the fight.
Before his three-year lay-off, Jones’ last fight with Dominick Reyes looked like a sign of fatigue and burnout after years of title defenses. Jones struggled the most in the fight and was unable to properly execute his game plan as Dominick’s countering and disruptive fighting style kept Jones at bay. Despite Jones’ struggles, he was declared the winner by unanimous decision.
Another fighter who almost defeated Jon Jones was Alexander Gustafsson in 2013 at UFC 165. Alexander Gustafsson was a mirror image of Jon Jones with similar height, reach, and striking capabilities. Jones won the fight against Gustafsson in a closely contested five-rounder via split decision often referred to by some as a ‘robbery’.
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