Legendary two-weight world champion Jon Jones has been out of action since March of last year after finally returning from a lengthy absence.
The former light-heavyweight title holder had given himself a solid timeframe to bulk up to heavyweight. He let three years pass between his last defence against Dominick Reyes in 2020 and his return against Ciryl Gane, which he won within minutes in a stunning display to pick up the recently vacated belt.
But as he was preparing for his first defence last year, he suffered a torn pectoral and has since been out injured. However, he is now working towards a November date to finally face Stipe Miocic in his first bout as champion.
Jon Jones details how pec injury has been ‘most depressing’ of his life
Since returning to training in the past month, Jones has spent a lot of time on X, formerly Twitter, engaging with fans ahead of his comeback. And in an emotional post yesterday he detailed how much he has struggled with returning from his gruesome injury in order to get back fit.
When a social media user named Stewart asked him how his pec was doing, Jones wrote back: “It’s one of the most depressing injuries I’ve ever had, pushed my upper body strength back by years. I’m not even going to get into it, going to remain positive and keep putting in the work day by day.”
He later declared his love for his supporters amid a slew of trolling messages, adding: “If listening to people talk negatively about me over the Internet is the only downside that comes with this job. Man, this s*** is easy.
“Now, if people had it in them to disrespect me to my face, that would be different. Everything I’m ever a part of sells out, I have the longest lines everywhere I go. Trust me, I know how much support I have. Bones Jones fans out here thick.
Jon Jones teases date for Stipe Miocic fight after confirming UFC comeback
Last year, Jones and Miocic was booked for UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The promotion heads to the iconic Manhattan venue once a year around the first two weeks of November, with previous headliners including Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya and Daniel Cormier.
And Jones has teased that he will likely have to wait for that annual MSG show to face Miocic, telling one troll who asked him to defend his title: “I’ll be attempting to break my own record November 9, be sure to tune in. How many championships does one need?”
The former light-heavyweight champion has won 16 world title fights against the likes of Daniel Cormier, Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida and other major names. He is widely renowned as one of the greatest fighters of all time.
Jon Jones continues to dismiss interim champion Tom Aspinall
While Jones has been out of action, the UFC have crowned a new interim champion in his place. Tom Aspinall defeated Sergei Pavlovich at that Madison Square Garden event last year in order to secure the gold.
It now appears that the Brit will even have to defend that interim belt in his Manchester homecoming at UFC 304 before even being considered for a bout with Jones. Meanwhile, the American icon seems more keen on a bout with light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira.
Aspinall has pursued Jones in the press and even in person at a fan event, but seems to be down the queue of prospective opponents. Just this week when asked to fight Miocic and Aspinall to secure his legacy, he mocked fans for their suggestion.
“Hey Tom Brady, you still look healthy,” he goaded in a mocking tweet. “Give us two more Super Bowls and I’ll personally be more impressed by your career!”