Jon Jones says a lack of fear inside the Octagon has led him to the UFC’s heavyweight division.
On March 4, ‘Bones’ will compete for the first time in more than three years when he returns to headline UFC 285. Jones will be making his long-awaited heavyweight debut after dominating the 205-pound division for the better part of a decade. While Jones had teased his move to heavyweight years ago, the general consensus light heavyweight GOAT has never really opened up about why he wanted to make the jump up in weight. Until now, that is.
During an interview on Unlocking the Cage with Jimmy Smith, Jon Jones revealed that defending his title in the light heavyweight division became nothing more than just “another day at the office.” Without a viable contender at 205, Jones found himself disinterested in studying potential opponents and he no longer felt the thrill of competition inside the cage.
“I stopped studying footage as much, I started just looking forward to another day at the office. The fear was gone, I didn’t really fear these guys. I wasn’t happy with my pay, either. I was starting to fight guys like Reyes who had been dreaming of fighting me since college and he was just relatively unknown to the general public,” Jones admitted. “So I just wanted more. I wanted to be nervous again. I wanted to have fear again. I think fear is healthy and now we’re in this position.”
Jon Jones Has Plenty to Fear Against Heavyweight Sensation Ciryl Gane
Jon Jones will have plenty to fear when he steps into the main event spotlight with a man that has been dominating the heavyweight division in his own right for years. Ciryl Gane has bested some of the promotion’s heaviest hitters including Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Alexander Volkov, Derek Lewis, and Tai Tuivasa.
Gane’s only career loss came at UFC 270 when he challenged then-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. With ‘The Predator’ no longer in the picture, Gane now has the opportunity to win the UFC championship title in the heavyweight division, while also ruining the long-awaited debut of another heavyweight fighter.
UFC 285 will air live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, March 4. In addition to the massive heavyweight championship main event, fans will also see the return of UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko. ‘Bullet’ will defend her title against No. 5 ranked contender Alexa Grasso. Also on tap is the promotional debut of three-time NCAA Division I national champion Bo Nickal and undefeated welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov returns to the Octagon.
Transcription courtesy of MMA News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saWnmQeHndc
