Chris Daukaus is not concerned about Jon Jones in the slightest.
Daukaus is currently 4-0 in the UFC with finishes in each of those fights. He will now look to earn the biggest win of his career when he faces former title challenger Derrick Lewis in the UFC Vegas 45 headliner this weekend.
A win — especially an emphatic one — would springboard Daukaus right into the title mix with current champion Francis Ngannou set to defend his crown against former teammate Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 next month.
However, one fighter that always looms over the heavyweight division is former light heavyweight champion Jones who has been planning his move up for almost two years now.
Most recently, he posted the following:
“I said I’ll be the champion in 2022, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I feel like I’m jumping up three weight classes, going from competing at 205 pounds to 265 pounds is no easy task. Nothing great happened overnight, I’m patient and I’m working my ass off every day towards my goals.”
And with his domestic violence charge being dismissed, it looks like the path is finally being paved for Jones to make his move up in 2022. If it does happen, it would also mean Daukaus would more than likely be pushed down the pecking order if he does beat Lewis.
Chris Daukaus: I Could Care Less About Jon Jones
Daukaus, however, is not bothered by whatever Jones is doing.
For one, he needs to see it to believe whether Jones will make the move up — especially given that he’s been talking about a heavyweight move for almost a decade now.
“I’ll fight every one of those people [contenders]. It doesn’t matter to me,” Daukaus said in a recent interview when asked how he’d like to see the heavyweight picture pan out. “It kind of sucks with Jon Jones — his name is always brought up. What can I do? He’s Jon Jones, he’s been talking about doing this, coming up to heavyweight for how many years now? So I’m not concerned with Jon.
“Unless Jon steps in there at heavyweight and starts fighting at heavyweight and knocking people out or finishing people. I’m truly not concerned with Jon. I really could care less about what he’s doing or what the UFC has planned for him. I just consider him to be a guy who’s still looking for the media and looking to get his name out there. I mean, yeah, he wants to fight but I don’t think he can keep his sh*t together to fight.”
As for who Daukaus is focused on, it’s naturally Lewis.
But once he gets the win as he expects to, he has no problem fighting former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic next.
“As far as who I’m really focused on, it’s obviously the fight in January with Francis and Ciryl,” he added. “And then, the other people I need to focus on is the other people in the heavyweight division who is active. I’ll get through Derrick Lewis on Saturday, I’ll fight Stipe, I got no problem with that.”
You can watch the clip below:
"I could care less about what he's [Jon Jones] doing."@ChrisDaukausMMA discusses how he has prepared for his upcoming fight at #UFCVegas45 against Derrick Lewis and takes time to break down the heavyweight division with @RJcliffordMMA and @MieshaTate pic.twitter.com/vYdyVGGvYJ
— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) December 16, 2021
