Israel Adesanya reignites his rivalry with Jon Jones.
UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya still has his sights set on a super-fight with Jon Jones, but if that fight is ever to happen, “Bones” needs to “get his sh-t together.” And soon.
Adesanya will have all but cleared out the middleweight division if he beats Jared Cannonier next month, and the 32-year-old is thinking about another move up to 205, where he hopes to fight Jones.
But if that fight is to materialize, Jones needs to start fighting again, even if it’s at heavyweight.
“He should move up in weight first [before we fight],” Adesanya told reporters at a UFC press conference in Sydney, Australia (h/t MMA Fighting). “Go fight Francis [Ngannou], or even, like, I don’t know, stop being on TMZ. Get his life together.”
“This is facts, or am I saying anything that’s not true?” he continued. “Just get his s*** together first, like [Daniel Cormier] said, and yeah, start fighting again, because there’s no fight if someone’s not fighting.
“I’m the one fighting, I’m staying active, I moved up in weight – not just talking about it. I’m going to do it again. Cementing my own legacy. I’m just worried about me right now. That’s the thing.”
Jones has been inactive since he relinquished the light heavyweight title in 2020 but is expected to return to competition later this year, where he is anticipated to fight Stipe Miocic for the interim heavyweight belt. The 34-year-old was formerly considered the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the world and is widely recognized as the greatest light heavyweight champion in UFC history.
UFC 276: Adesanya vs. Cannonier takes place July 2 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.