The current UFC Heavyweight Champion, Jon Jones, is one of the most dominant and best fighters in the history of MMA. He joined the UFC at the age of 20 and also made history by becoming the youngest UFC champion at just 23. Apart from an extraordinary career in the octagon, his life has been full of legal issues and arrests as well. MMA fans have seen Jones for years, but there are still a lot of things about him that people don’t know about.
He was a underdog at his debut
Jones is one of the greatest fighters of this era, but he was not always considered to be strong. In fact, he was actually a big underdog during his UFC debut. He was 6-0 at the time he took a short-notice fight against then-undefeated prospect Andre Gusmao. Jones dominated Gusmao at UFC 87 and won the fight via unanimous decision.
His football coach gave him the nickname “Bones”
Jon Jones has always been a great athlete, as he played other sports while growing up. Like his other brothers, Arthur and Chandler, Jones played football in high school. Despite being a little skinny for the position, Jones played defensive line during high school and because of his lean physique, his football coach gave him the nickname “Bones”.
Jones wanted to become a Priest
Jon Jones is a very religious person, which can always be seen. It is rare for him not to begin a post-fight interview without thanking God. But given his upbringing, it is no surprise that he is so religious. His father is a pastor at a church in New York. Before entering the MMA world, Jon was considering following in his father’s footsteps and becoming a priest. His father supported his decision, but eventually Jon turned his attention towards MMA.
First Fighter to be sponsored by Nike
Jones’ rise to fame was sudden and insane. He entered MMA at a time when it was viewed by most people as a juvenile sport. Jones helped change that reputation with his look and speech, and he soon made history as the first fighter to be sponsored by the company Nike on a truly global level. This was a big thing for him and the game.
UFC tried to overturn his DQ loss
Every MMA fan knows that in 2009, Jones suffered his only loss to then light-heavyweight contender Matt Hamill. However, this defeat was due to disqualification by the controversial 12-6 elbow rule, making it Jones’ only defeat to date. However, the UFC and Dana White worked really hard to overturn this loss. There were even appeals to the Commission to reverse the fight in 2021, but to no avail.
Jones nearly lost his title to Sonnen
Chael Sonnen is one of the unluckiest fighters of all time. He defeated then-WEC champion Paulo Filho, except the title was not at stake due to the champion missing weight. Sonnen then overpowered Anderson Silva, but he got caught with seconds remaining. Then his bout with Jones further enhanced that legacy. Jones dominated Sonnen and finished him in the first round to defend his championship. However, after the fight, it was revealed that Jones had actually dislocated the big toe on his left foot. It was a terrible sight and if Sonnen had survived the second round, he probably would have been declared champion due to injury.
He once stopped a robbery before his title fight
Jones wasn’t always the bad boy of the UFC and was actually quite the opposite during the beginning of his career. He once stopped a robbery on the day of his title win over Shogun Rua, which earned him a good reputation in the MMA. Jones was headed to the park for arbitration hours with his two coaches before his fight with Rua. That’s when he saw an elderly couple screaming for help. The couple told him and the coaches that a man broke their car window and robbed them. He tracked the robber and held him until police arrived.
Jones vs. Lesnar was about to happen
Jones was on top of the world after his win over Daniel Cormier at UFC 214. He regained the title he never lost and immediately turned his attention towards another foe, Brock Lesnar. Jones called out Lesnar during his post-fight promo and Lesnar seemed ready to fight him. However, the fight never happened because Jones tested positive for steroids and was suspended.
He lost only fight according to the Judges
Jon Jones is dominant in every fight. It is difficult to find a round that Jones has lost in his entire career, let alone in an entire fight. However, according to a judge, he lost a fight. Jones lost his narrow fight to Thiago Santos, according to a judge at UFC 239. Luckily for him, the other two judges thought he did enough to defend the title. However, many MMA fans think that he lost the Dominick Reyes fight and also the one against Alexander Gustafsson.
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