Jon Jones has restored order to the heavyweight division.
The kingdom was without a crown after former 265-pound titleholder, Francis Ngannou, surrendered the strap when the promotion failed to meet his contract demands. Jones was later paired with former interim champion Ciryl Gane in the UFC 285 pay-per-view (PPV) main event and it took “Bones” roughly two minutes to dispose of “Bon Gamin.”
Watch video highlights of his dominant performance here.
With his guillotine finish over Gane, the 35 year-old Jones becomes the eighth fighter in UFC history to win titles in two separate divisions. It also marks the first submission for “Bones” since slapping a keylock on Vitor Belfort in late 2012 and the first time “Bon Gamin” has been finished in his professional MMA career.
Ngannou was quick to congratulate Jones on Twitter.
“Good job Jonny Boy,” Ngannou wrote. “Sincerely, the heavyweight king.”
Ngannou fans may argue that Jones isn’t the “real” champion because he never beat “The Predator,” but defeating Gane in such dominant fashion may have Jones fans claiming just the opposite: Ngannou never beat Jones, who is not only the consensus pound-for-pound greatest of all time, but also a proven heavyweight destroyer.
The promotion went to great lengths to try and pair Jones with Ngannou but UFC President Dana White claimed Jones wanted “Deontay Wilder” money to get the deal done. Similarly, Ngannou balked at the suggestion of battling “Bones” for his regular fight purse. Things eventually went from bad-to-worse and Jones hit the showers.
Ngannou hit the free agent market.
With White claiming Ngannou will never again step foot inside the Octagon, it’s unlikely we’ll see “The Predator” square off with Jones. As for the newly-minted heavyweight champion, he appears to be on a collision course with former titleholder Stipe Miocic in the UFC 290 PPV headliner at the end of “International Fight Week” in July.
For more UFC 285 results and fallout click here.