UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos has thrown down the gauntlet to his light heavyweight counterpart, Jon Jones, saying that he would happily welcome him to the higher weight class if he moves up.
In an interview aired on UFC Tonight (H/T bjpenn.com), JDS made it clear that only the heavyweight title-holder can call himself the “baddest man on the planet”—an accolade once reserved for boxing’s heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.
“There is just one baddest man on the planet and I think I am this guy now,” Dos Santos said. “So, if he moves up to the heavyweight division, I will think about the fight. If the UFC put him in front of me to challenge me, we’re going to fight and I will give my best. ”
The Brazilian was responding to rumours that Jones is looking to move up to heavyweight sometime next year.
The light heavyweight champion has been a sensation since entering the UFC in 2008 and has virtually cleared out the division, so now the promotion is scraping the barrel looking for opponents for him to face.
When the No. 1 title contender Dan Henderson was injured for his match against Jones in September, the UFC found it nearly impossible to find a suitable opponent—ultimately turning to a middleweight to face him in Vitor Belfort.
Jones is set to face another middleweight next year, Chael Sonnen, in a fight that few think Sonnen deserves. But after that fight, rather than looking to upcoming light heavyweight stars such as Phil Davis, Alexander Gustafsson or Glover Teixeira, it seems Jones has his eyes set on much bigger opponents at 265 lbs.
Jones famously has the biggest reach in MMA, and many have said that he’s already oversized for the light heavyweight division. However, if he does move up, he’ll meet men such as Dos Santos, who are much closer to his size.
Dos Santos is set to defend his title against Cain Velasquez at UFC 155 on December 29 in Las Vegas, NV.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com