By Philip O’Connor
(Reuters) – Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones returns to the octagon on Saturday in Las Vegas after a three-year absence seeking to re-state his claim to be the greatest fighter of all time, despite his many troubles.
It speaks volumes about his stature in the sport that the 35-year-old will get an immediate shot at the heavyweight title against France’s Ciryl Gane at UFC 285, despite not fighting since beating Dominick Reyes in February 2020.
“I’m ready to dominate, but if I don’t dominate and the fight goes five rounds, I’m ready to press forward, I’m ready for a dog fight,” Jones told a media conference ahead of his return at the T-Mobile Arena on Saturday night.
“I’m ready to bleed and sweat and leave my heart out there. I’m ready for however it goes. I feel pretty prepared for victory.”
Though undoubtedly one of the most talented fighters ever to pull on a pair of four-ounce MMA gloves, Jones has often been his own worst enemy, as failed drug tests and incidents outside the cage have damaged his reputation.
The New York native was stripped of his light heavyweight title in 2015 after a hit-and-run incident involving a pregnant woman, and in 2016 he was stripped of the interim title and given a year-long ban for a positive drug test.
In 2017 he tested positive again, this time for the steroid Turinabol, but each time the UFC welcomed him back with open arms once he had served his ban.
He beat Sweden’s Alexander Gustafsson to reclaim the belt in 2018 and seemed to be holding it together until an allegation of domestic violence in Las Vegas in 2021, which led to him pleading no contest to a charge of tampering with a police vehicle during his arrest.
Saturday represents the latest in a long line of second chances for one of the sport’s most notorious figures, and a win for the bulked-up Jones will see his name thrust into discussions about who is the best in the world at the moment.
Australia’s featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski was unsuccessful in his recent bid to add the lightweight crown, but Jones is looking beyond him and all others.
“He (Volkanovski) is refreshing, he speaks well, his country loves him, he represents the sport well,” Jones said when the comparison was put to him.
“(But) I’m fighting to be the greatest fighter ever, not to be the pound-for-pound best right now.”
(Reporting by Philip O’Connor; Editing by Toby Davis)
