UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has laid out his immediate future plans.
There have been constant talks about Jon Jones moving up to heavyweight. During a brief dialogue with Cain Velasquez via Instagram, the reigning UFC light heavyweight champion declared his move up in weight to be “inevitable.”
“Bones” has been active since late 2018, when he reclaimed the 205-pound title in a rematch against Alexander Gustafsson. He immediately followed it up with a successful title defense against Anthony Smith at UFC 235 in March.
Jones is currently slated for a second title defense against Thiago Santos at UFC 239. After which, he foresees two more fights at 205 pounds, before finally moving up to heavyweight.
“I’m thinking at least three more,” Jones told BT Sport (transcript by TheBodyLockMMA.com). “The UFC has been kind of whispering after Thiago Santos, Luke Rockhold possibly. And then, I’d imagine Johnny Walker is going to be in that mix as well.
“So I think I got three really tough fights ahead of me before moving up.”
Jones is in no way looking past his challenger, as he remains assured of victory as long as he continues to do what he does best.
“Really just be who we are. Be who we are. You know, Thiago is a very game opponent, aggressive guy, strong guy. I’m sure he’s extremely hungry,” Jones said.
“But I know that I’m a tall feat. I’m a tall mountain to climb. And I just have to be who I am and don’t change anything really.”
UFC 239 is scheduled to take place on July 6th in Las Vegas. It will be co-headlined by a women’s bantamweight title fight between Amanda Nunes and Holly Holm.