Carlos Condit recently told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones had resumed training. “I’ll be back.” Condit said those were Jones’ exact words during a friendly conversation at Greg Jackson’s …
Carlos Condit recently told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones had resumed training. “I’ll be back.” Condit said those were Jones’ exact words during a friendly conversation at Greg Jackson’s MMA.
Anderson Silva, who has long served as a mentor to Jones, isn’t a fan of the idea of the 27-year-old star being thrust back into the spotlight so soon. When speaking with TMZ Sports, he admitted he would rather see Jones step away for a bit and change things in his life.
“I don’t think so man. Jones is a good boy—he’s a good man. He needs to focus,” Silva said. “… I love Jones, but he needs to change everything in life.”
Jones is facing a felony charge after an alleged hit-and-run incident in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in late April. MMAFighting‘s Marc Raimondi reported an off-duty police officer saw Jones crash into two other vehicles after running a red light.
One of the vehicles was occupied by a 20-year-old pregnant woman. According to Raimondi‘s article, witnesses in the area reported seeing Jones grab a handful of cash from his vehicle before leaving the accident. Marijuana was found inside the car.
Jones turned himself into law enforcement the next day before posting bail a few hours later with $2,500. The Bernalillo County District Attorney has yet to decide whether to bring the trial to a grand jury.
Jones was slated to defend his UFC light heavyweight title against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson on Saturday, but after speaking with UFC President Dana White and UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, he was stripped of his title and indefinitely suspended from the UFC. He also was removed from the official UFC rankings.
Jessica Aguilar, one of the best strawweight fighters in the world, is now on the free-agent market.
Appearing on The MMA Hour, the former WSOF women’s strawweight champ announced that World Series of Fighting had released her on Monday, freeing u…
Jessica Aguilar, one of the best strawweight fighters in the world, is now on the free-agent market.
Appearing on The MMA Hour, the former WSOF women’s strawweight champ announced that World Series of Fighting had released her on Monday, freeing up an opportunity to finally sign with the UFC and compete against the best 115-pound fighters in the world:
I’m excited to be here as a free agent today. I’m looking forward to challenging myself against the best and proving why I’m the No. 1-ranked fighter in the world. … The UFC wasn’t allowed to talk to me while I was under contract with WSOF. So I’ve solved that issue for them. I’m a free agent.
WSOF granted the release per request, according to Aguilar.
It’s unprecedented to see a company honor such requests, especially from a world champion. But WSOF was willing to cut ties with its 115-pound queen, thus granting her an opportunity to take her talents elsewhere.
If signed to the UFC, Aguilar would be a major addition to a strawweight division already rich with talent. She is currently riding a 10-fight win streak, with notable victories over MegumiFujii, Lisa Ellis and former UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza.
The timing of Aguilar’s release is impeccable considering Esparza‘s comments a week ago on The MMA Hour, where she called Aguilar a “cheater” and accused her of using performance-enhancing drugs. Perhaps a rematch between Aguilar and Esparza could finally be on the horizon.
The UFC will likely be interested in signing the former WSOF champ.
Many publications, including Sherdog.com, have Aguilar listed behind undefeated 115-pound UFC champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk at No. 2 in the strawweight rankings.
JordyMcElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
The feeling of foam beneath your feet and melodic sounds of hanging Thai bags swinging in unison can postpone real-world problems. In an outside world filled with vitriol and negativity, the gym is one of the few places left for Jon Jones to find peace…
The feeling of foam beneath your feet and melodic sounds of hanging Thai bags swinging in unison can postpone real-world problems. In an outside world filled with vitriol and negativity, the gym is one of the few places left for Jon Jones to find peace and solitude.
The former UFC light heavyweight champ’s recent fall from grace has been a tumble into obscurity. He went from being hailed as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world to completely being erased from the UFC rankings. Weeks have passed without so much as a whisper from Jones.
Journalists continue to write stories about him, and fans continue to vehemently defend polar opposite opinions of him. But it all falls on deaf ears. Jones has been radio silent ever since his apologetic tweet, following his felony arrest for a hit-and-run in Albuquerque a few weeks ago.
Carlos Condit, a former UFC interim champion, is hard at work preparing for his return on May 30 against ThiagoAlves.
While training at Greg Jackson’s MMA, he looks up from time to time to see the most polarizing superstar in the UFC still putting in work, sharpening his sword as some might say, despite his personal life being set ablaze by worldly mistakes.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Condit told Ariel Helwani:
Jon’s been around the gym a little bit, which is good. I like to see him down there. It’s a crazy situation that he’s going to have to deal with. I think having him in the gym doing what he does best, training and trying to keep that side of his life going, is a good thing. [I] Talked to him briefly, but not about the incident but about the situation. He said, ‘I’ll be back, I’m going to be back.’ I believe him, there’s no doubt. I think there’s a good chance. In his mind, he’s fighting again.
MalkiKawa, Jones’s manager, recently hinted at the possibility Jones would never fight again. When speaking with Ariel Helwani, he claimed there is a chance the 27-year-old legend quietly rides off into the sunset, leaving his perfect fighting career forever frozen in time.
But we won’t be fooled by those odds. Walking away from competition isn’t an easy feat for most athletes, especially world-class ones like Jones. The fire to compete is the one thing that transcends even Father Time. Former athletes grow old and reminisce on past glory, wishing they could turn back the clock.
The same fire burns within Jones, who continues to grind away in the gym, according to Condit.
In a strange way, Jones has been forced back to his roots. Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Daniel Cormier will compete for the light heavyweight title on Saturday at UFC 187. The burden of being a champion has been lifted from Jones’ shoulders.
For the first time in a long time, he gets to slow down and look at his career through a more objective lens. When did everything go sideways? What ever happened to that unassuming, eager fighter taking it all in bit by bit, graciously enjoying the moment?
No one is immune to the trials and tribulations of life. Those same trials and tribulations increase exponentially when wealth and power gets involved. Like hip-hop legend The Notorious B.I.G. said, “Mo Money Mo Problems.” Distance isn’t always a bad thing. Sometimes it helps us get back what was lost.
If a timeout is the cure, so be it. The vintage Jon Jones is definitely worth saving.
JordyMcElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
The feeling of foam beneath your feet and melodic sounds of hanging Thai bags swinging in unison can postpone real-world problems. In an outside world filled with vitriol and negativity, the gym is one of the few places left for Jon Jones to find peace…
The feeling of foam beneath your feet and melodic sounds of hanging Thai bags swinging in unison can postpone real-world problems. In an outside world filled with vitriol and negativity, the gym is one of the few places left for Jon Jones to find peace and solitude.
The former UFC light heavyweight champ’s recent fall from grace has been a tumble into obscurity. He went from being hailed as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world to completely being erased from the UFC rankings. Weeks have passed without so much as a whisper from Jones.
Journalists continue to write stories about him, and fans continue to vehemently defend polar opposite opinions of him. But it all falls on deaf ears. Jones has been radio silent ever since his apologetic tweet, following his felony arrest for a hit-and-run in Albuquerque a few weeks ago.
Carlos Condit, a former UFC interim champion, is hard at work preparing for his return on May 30 against ThiagoAlves.
While training at Greg Jackson’s MMA, he looks up from time to time to see the most polarizing superstar in the UFC still putting in work, sharpening his sword as some might say, despite his personal life being set ablaze by worldly mistakes.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Condit told Ariel Helwani:
Jon’s been around the gym a little bit, which is good. I like to see him down there. It’s a crazy situation that he’s going to have to deal with. I think having him in the gym doing what he does best, training and trying to keep that side of his life going, is a good thing. [I] Talked to him briefly, but not about the incident but about the situation. He said, ‘I’ll be back, I’m going to be back.’ I believe him, there’s no doubt. I think there’s a good chance. In his mind, he’s fighting again.
MalkiKawa, Jones’s manager, recently hinted at the possibility Jones would never fight again. When speaking with Ariel Helwani, he claimed there is a chance the 27-year-old legend quietly rides off into the sunset, leaving his perfect fighting career forever frozen in time.
But we won’t be fooled by those odds. Walking away from competition isn’t an easy feat for most athletes, especially world-class ones like Jones. The fire to compete is the one thing that transcends even Father Time. Former athletes grow old and reminisce on past glory, wishing they could turn back the clock.
The same fire burns within Jones, who continues to grind away in the gym, according to Condit.
In a strange way, Jones has been forced back to his roots. Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and Daniel Cormier will compete for the light heavyweight title on Saturday at UFC 187. The burden of being a champion has been lifted from Jones’ shoulders.
For the first time in a long time, he gets to slow down and look at his career through a more objective lens. When did everything go sideways? What ever happened to that unassuming, eager fighter taking it all in bit by bit, graciously enjoying the moment?
No one is immune to the trials and tribulations of life. Those same trials and tribulations increase exponentially when wealth and power gets involved. Like hip-hop legend The Notorious B.I.G. said, “Mo Money Mo Problems.” Distance isn’t always a bad thing. Sometimes it helps us get back what was lost.
If a timeout is the cure, so be it. The vintage Jon Jones is definitely worth saving.
JordyMcElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
The Nature Boy Ric Flair once said, “To be the man, you gotta beat the man.” It is a saying that has carried on as a seamless slogan throughout every form of human competition. Yet standing before us is an empty UFC light heavyweight throne…
The Nature Boy Ric Flair once said, “To be the man, you gotta beat the man.” It is a saying that has carried on as a seamless slogan throughout every form of human competition. Yet standing before us is an empty UFC light heavyweight throne, and we are all pretending as if the real king doesn’t exist.
Jon Jones, who is widely considered the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, is still out there somewhere fighting his own battles outside of the cage. Anthony Johnson and Daniel Cormier have both tipped their hats to Jones being the best.
They aren’t so naive to think that one mistake has somehow eradicated everything Jones has accomplished as champion.
However, they also won’t be apologetic for the incredible opportunity laid before them on May 23. Both men will vie for UFC gold in a division no longer ruled by Jones. When the smoke clears at UFC 187, Bruce Buffer will be attaching a new name to the light heavyweight title.
Jones, a king without a throne, will look on from afar as years of hard work and dedication get ripped away based on poor judgment. After being identified by an off-duty police officer in an alleged hit-and-run, per MMAFighting’s Marc Raimondi, Jones was arrested on a felony charge. He was then stripped of the light heavyweight title and indefinitely suspended by the UFC.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Jones’ manager, Malki Kawa, hinted at the possibility Jones may never fight again. Perhaps his most recent run-in with law enforcement will finally be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
Cormier claimed he was OK with Jones possibly never returning to MMA, although he did admit it would be unfortunate.
“I think he’ll be back. Jon Jones is a fighter, and I don’t think he’d want to walk away from the sport under the circumstances,” said Cormier during Wednesday’s UFC 187 media conference call.
“For everything he’s done positive for this sport—to walk away under this black cloud—it would be unfortunate so I do believe he’ll come back. But me personally? Do I care if he comes back? I would love to fight him again, but that’s really his decision. I’m not going to beg him to come back. He can come back if he wants to.”
Johnson echoed Cormier’s thoughts, simply adding, “I have the exact same feelings as DC has.”
Jones was initially slated to fight Johnson in the UFC 187 main event, but the company pulled him from the fight card a day after his arrest. Cormier, who lost a decision to Jones in January, was the obvious replacement, considering his rank in the division and the fact he was already training for a fight with Ryan Bader in June.
Under different circumstances, a fight between Johnson and Cormier would command the same amount of hype and praise justified for any blockbuster fight. But no matter how bright the sun shines, a storm is inevitable. The pouring rain is inevitable. Talk of Jon Jones is inevitable.
“Jon casts such a big shadow on the division. Anytime this weight class is going to be discussed, there’s going to be some mention of Jon Jones,” Cormier said.
“It’s expected obviously for me. I wasn’t scheduled to fight for the championship. Anthony was already fighting for the belt. He’s just getting what he was promised when he beat Alexander Gustafsson in January. So if anybody should be answering the question about whether or not the belt is real, it should be me because I just fought for it and lost.
“He’s only getting what he was promised when he earned the title shot in January. It’s not his fault that something happened to his opponent outside of the Octagon that was so big that the fight couldn’t go forward. So it’s not annoying for me because it’s expected, but if I was Anthony, I’d be a little annoyed because I’m only fighting for what I was promised when I beat the No. 1 guy in the division.”
Rumble, young man! Rumble!
The beast reincarnated has demonstrated complete dominance over his last nine opponents, including Alexander Gustafsson, a top contender in the light heavyweight division. To put it bluntly, Johnson left the pride of Sweden in tears in front of his hometown crowd in Stockholm.
It was the kind of jaw-dropping performance that added assurance to those already on Johnson’s bandwagon and enlightenment to those still on the fence. This isn’t the same fighter who dropped submission losses to Vitor Belfort, Josh Koscheck and Rich Clementi.
Cormier is up to the task of foiling the newfound hype behind the hottest fighter in the division. If he walks away victorious, he is open to giving Jones an immediate rematch upon his return.
“I believe he should [get an immediate title shot],” said Cormier. “Anytime you’ve ruled a division for as long as Jon did, when he comes back, he should get a title shot immediately. I think it does depend on the time. If he’s gone for a really long time, is he really going to want to fight for the belt right away, or would he want to take kind of a tuneup fight first? I think you leave it up to him.”
All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. JordyMcElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
The unveiling of the UFC’s new sponsorship program with Reebok already has some fighters flirting with Bellator, according to Scott Coker.
In an interview with MMAFighting.com’s Luke Thomas, the Bellator CEO elaborated on some of the things he wa…
The unveiling of the UFC’s new sponsorship program with Reebok already has some fighters flirting with Bellator, according to Scott Coker.
In an interview with MMAFighting.com‘s Luke Thomas, the Bellator CEO elaborated on some of the things he was hearing about the UFC’s new sponsorship policy, which goes into effect on July 11 at UFC 189. To say fighters are upset would be a huge understatement when piecing together the feelings of some regarding the new Reebok deal.
Coker admitted his phone has been ringing ever since details of the sponsorship came to light:
You’d have to talk to UFC to see how they’re going to handle that situation, but I’m sure they’re going to do something. The fighters are not going to be happy if it’s taking out $150-$200,000 a year in sponsorships from their pocket. I will tell you this, the phone’s been ringing.
Some UFC fighters have even vented their frustrations on Twitter:
In December, the UFC and Reebok reached a six-year, $70 million agreement for Reebok to be the UFC’s exclusive outfitter.
The new deal theoretically eliminates the need for outside sponsors and groups the entire company under the same umbrella. Fighters will now receive sponsorship money from Reebok in a tenure-based system.
The UFC brass has vehemently argued the new system will maintain a steady stream of sponsorship money and eliminate the hassle of fighters dealing with outside sponsors. According to UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, per MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani, fighters will also receive royalties on gear that is sold with their name and likeness.
All of these things sound good in theory, but it doesn’t take a mathematician to do the numbers and realize some fighters will get hit in the pockets hard from this new policy. Even UFC commentator Joe Rogan, during last week’s episode of The Joe Rogan Experiencepodcast show, admitted that having Reebok on board was great but not if it hurts the fighters.
“Fighters can’t have independent sponsors when they walk into the cage now, and financially, it seems to be a huge disaster for the fighters,” said Rogan.
JordyMcElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
Carlos Condit recently told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones had resumed training. “I’ll be back.” Condit said those were Jones’ exact words during a friendly conversation at Greg Jackson’s MMA.