Jan 24, 2022

  • Marc RaimondiESPN Staff Writer

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Jon Jones was going to be in omnipresence at UFC 270 on Saturday night. He'd be there, likely close to the Octagon, to watch the heavyweight title unification fight betwixt Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane, and the winner would likely be his adjacent opponent.

That was the plan a week prior to the event, those close to him told ESPN. But in the unpredictable world of arguably the greatest MMA fighter to ever live, things practise not e'er get as planned.

"Right now, I'yard on a perfect preparation routine, don't wanna disturb it for anything," Jones told ESPN'due south Brett Okamoto in a text message a few days out from UFC 270. "No need to flatter these big boys, excited to get the job done when it's time."

Instead, Jones took to Twitter on Saturday to address the fight -- which he publicly deemed lackluster -- and Ngannou, the man who left Honda Eye as the UFC undisputed champion after a unanimous conclusion victory.

"At the finish of the mean solar day, I'grand f---ing them both upward," Jones tweeted and later deleted.

Jones, the quondam longtime UFC lite heavyweight champion, also teased retirement and took a shot at Gane, writing he loves how "everyone gets so impressed with the new guy."

"If this is the Apex of heavyweight fighting, I'1000 excited about information technology," Jones tweeted. "Got some more than records to interruption."

Onetime Aureate Boy boxing CEO Richard Schaefer, who is advising Jones in his negotiations with the UFC, is also very confident in Jones' chances of beating either Ngannou or Gane.

"The mode [Jones] went about preparing to move up to heavyweight is unheard of in UFC history," Schaefer told ESPN. "He is not chasing a bigger payday and moving up. No. He prepared mentally and physically to be heavyweight champion. Information technology will be the biggest nighttime in UFC history."

As always seems to be the case with Jones, this won't be a straight path to a satisfying catastrophe. Ngannou said he tore his right MCL and damaged his ACL three weeks before fighting Gane. He believes he needs surgery. On height of that, Ngannou is in the middle of a very messy, and very public, contract impasse with the UFC.

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Jon Jones eyeing 2022 return

Jon Jones expects to return to the UFC in the second quarter of 2022 and would similar to face up the winner of Francis Ngannou vs. Ciryl Gane.

Dana White, the UFC president, didn't put the belt on Ngannou later on the fight, and did non nourish the postfight printing conference, both of which have go customary for White on major fight nights. Ngannou would take been a gratis agent had he lost. Merely by retaining the title, the UFC's champions clause kicks in, meaning Ngannou volition still be nether contract for the bridge of three fights or one twelvemonth, whichever comes earliest.

Ngannou has vowed to never fight again on his current contract and has been open up about his desire to venture into boxing. Information technology'south very possible this could exist the last time nosotros run across Ngannou in the Octagon every bit he heads into surgery and potential gratis agency in early 2023.

Ngannou said after his victory over Gane he was "pumped" when he won the title from Stipe Miocic in 2021, because Jones was pegged equally the next challenger. Just things have gone a flake haywire on multiple fronts.

"Since I won that fight, I never heard about it," Ngannou said. "So, at this signal I don't actually know what is off the table."

If Ngannou will be out of UFC action for an extended menstruation of time, or mayhap for skillful, Jones could pursue an interim title fight with Gane, or sometime gnaw Miocic. Miocic has expressed some interest in a Jones fight. Derrick Lewis could too put himself back in the mix with a win over Tai Tuivasa on Feb. 12 at UFC 271.

Jones and his team fully expect to go the next championship shot after Ngannou vs. Gane.

"We merely have to see how information technology plays out in the next few weeks," Schaefer said.

Jones, 34, has not fought since February 2020, a shut unanimous determination win over Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 to retain the UFC light heavyweight title. In August 2020, Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt with an eye toward moving up to heavyweight and going after that championship.

Jones was supposed to exist next up for the winner of the championship fight between Ngannou and Miocic at UFC 260 terminal March. In preparation for the move, Jones bulked upward significantly. In September, he said he was 255 pounds and targeting 270 for his heavyweight debut (he would so take to cut to 265 to make the heavyweight title limit). Those numbers are a far cry from 205 pounds, where Jones has spent the elapsing of his career.

But Jones butted heads both publicly and privately with the UFC during contract talks later Ngannou became champ. Jones tweeted that an offer in the $viii million to $10 1000000 range would exist "way as well low for a fight of this magnitude."

Last May, Jones hired Schaefer equally his adviser. Schaefer, who now leads the boxing organization Probellum, has had a friendly human relationship with White for years and came into the fold confident he could get a deal done.

The UFC, however, went in a dissimilar direction that didn't fifty-fifty include Ngannou, after he informed them he would not be ready in time for that date on a short turnaround due to a previously scheduled trip dorsum to his habitation in Cameroon.

The promotion booked Gane against Lewis for the acting title at UFC 265 last Baronial, a fight that Gane won to set up a championship unification bout with Ngannou, his onetime teammate at MMA Factory in Paris. The rich backstory between the two men, including Ngannou's ongoing feud with Gane'south bus (and Ngannou'south former mentor) Fernand Lopez, made it like shooting fish in a barrel for the UFC to continue Jones in limbo for another championship fight.

Meanwhile, just hours after he was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame for his epic 2013 fight with Alexander Gustafsson, Jones was arrested Sept. 24 in Las Vegas for felony tampering with a vehicle and misdemeanor domestic battery. Jones took a nolo contendere plea last month and got off without jail fourth dimension. Information technology was the latest in a string of outside-the-muzzle issues for the legendary fighter that include a felony hit-and-run charge, several DUI arrests and two failed drug tests.

The September arrest got Jones suspended from his JacksonWink MMA gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he has spent his entire, 14-twelvemonth UFC career. Although JacksonWink coaches Greg Jackson and Brandon Gibson still intend to coach him, Jones has as well started to visit Fight Ready in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he is working with former UFC double champion Henry Cejudo and coaches Eric Albarracin and Eddie Cha. Jones' adjacent training camp could be split between Albuquerque and Scottsdale.

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Why is a potential Ngannou-Jones matchup and so enticing?

Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping both break down what they would be excited for if Francis Ngannou potentially faces Jon Jones in a heavyweight title fight.

"He has this God-given ability that'due south 2nd to none," Cejudo told ESPN. "But the crazy thing almost Jon Jones and him coming out here and seeing what we have to offering him, there's and then much room for him to grow still. Information technology'due south a trip. I almost feel similar he'southward become a globe gnaw just based on ability. Just based on his attributes and things similar that -- he'due south a winner."

Jones (26-1, one NC) is arguably the greatest UFC champion e'er, in whatsoever sectionalisation. He held the UFC calorie-free heavyweight title on and off for almost a decade, only losing information technology due to outside-the-cage issues. Jones' only loss came in 2009 via disqualification in a fight against Matt Hamill that he was absolutely dominating.

The New York native's résumé is unmatched. He's unbeaten in a UFC record 18 directly fights, is tied for the most title defenses in UFC history with Demetrious Johnson with eleven and has the nearly wins ever in UFC title fights with 14. Jones owns wins over erstwhile or electric current UFC champions Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Vitor Belfort, Glover Teixeira and Daniel Cormier.

With all of those accolades and his popularity, Jones seems like a no-brainer for the next UFC heavyweight championship shot, if the 2 sides can come to an agreement. If a deal with Ngannou can be brokered, Ngannou vs. Jones would be ane of the biggest pay-per-view main events of the yr and, with the right promotional efforts, ane of the top ones ever.

But once more, when it comes to Jones, things don't always go exactly equally planned. There are still more questions about the time to come of the heavyweight segmentation, even later on Ngannou's win over Gane, and they come straight from the top brass at UFC.

"I don't feel confident in proverb Jon Jones is next and non considering I think he'southward unreliable," White told Okamoto last week. "It's because I honestly don't know what Jon Jones wants to do side by side. I think Jon is gonna sentry this fight and he'll determine peradventure he doesn't fight at heavyweight. Maybe he goes dorsum and tries to regain the lite heavyweight championship. I honestly don't know the answer to that question."