Teammate: Jon Jones ‘being positive’, back to training in Albuquerque

Jon Jones’ hit-and-run case might be taken to a grand jury, but the former UFC light heavyweight champion is “being positive” about the entire situation.

The UFC star, who got stripped of the title after allegedly fleeing the scene after allegedly running a red light and hitting another car driven by a pregnant woman in Albuquerque in April, continues to train every day at the Jackson-Wink MMA gym in New Mexico.

“He trains every day. He’s always joking around and laughing,” Jones’ teammate Igor Araujo told MMAFighting.com. “I spoke with him the other day and he’s cool, being positive. The coach tells us what to do and he trains normally, every single day. He’s in shape, too.”

“On the first day Jones returned to the gym, they put him to clean the mat when the training session was over,” he continued. “They always pick someone to clean the mat after the training, and he didn’t complain he had to do it. He’s a nice guy, and a look up to him inside the gym.”

Igor Araujo, who returns to the UFC on July 15 against Sean Strickland, said that nobody brings up Jones’ case legal issues in the gym, and “Bones’” teammates expect him to eventually return to the Octagon and get his belt back.

“Nobody talks about it,” Araujo said. “I think he will get out of this situation. I don’t know what the justice is going to decide for his future, but he’s a champion.”

“Those in the UFC know that he’s the champion, and he will get that belt back,” he continued. “The champion is the best. Rafael dos Anjos won the title because he defeated everybody. (Chris) Weidman did the same thing. Jon Jones lost the title to himself. I told him that already. ‘The only man that can beat you is yourself’. We lose to ourselves all the time.”

With Jones out of the title picture, Daniel Cormier replaced him at UFC 187 and defeated Anthony Johnson to win the undisputed championship. However, Araujo says you can’t call yourself the undisputed UFC light heavyweight champion unless you beat Jones.

“Cormier deserves to be there with the belt, but every light heavyweight knows that the best fighter was sidelined,” he said. “It’s like Chad Mendes fighting Conor McGregor. They know Jose Aldo is the best, they know Aldo is the champion. Jones is the champion. Cormier is a good fighter, but Jones didn’t lose inside the Octagon.”

Jon Jones’ hit-and-run case might be taken to a grand jury, but the former UFC light heavyweight champion is “being positive” about the entire situation.

The UFC star, who got stripped of the title after allegedly fleeing the scene after allegedly running a red light and hitting another car driven by a pregnant woman in Albuquerque in April, continues to train every day at the Jackson-Wink MMA gym in New Mexico.

“He trains every day. He’s always joking around and laughing,” Jones’ teammate Igor Araujo told MMAFighting.com. “I spoke with him the other day and he’s cool, being positive. The coach tells us what to do and he trains normally, every single day. He’s in shape, too.”

“On the first day Jones returned to the gym, they put him to clean the mat when the training session was over,” he continued. “They always pick someone to clean the mat after the training, and he didn’t complain he had to do it. He’s a nice guy, and a look up to him inside the gym.”

Igor Araujo, who returns to the UFC on July 15 against Sean Strickland, said that nobody brings up Jones’ case legal issues in the gym, and “Bones’” teammates expect him to eventually return to the Octagon and get his belt back.

“Nobody talks about it,” Araujo said. “I think he will get out of this situation. I don’t know what the justice is going to decide for his future, but he’s a champion.”

“Those in the UFC know that he’s the champion, and he will get that belt back,” he continued. “The champion is the best. Rafael dos Anjos won the title because he defeated everybody. (Chris) Weidman did the same thing. Jon Jones lost the title to himself. I told him that already. ‘The only man that can beat you is yourself’. We lose to ourselves all the time.”

With Jones out of the title picture, Daniel Cormier replaced him at UFC 187 and defeated Anthony Johnson to win the undisputed championship. However, Araujo says you can’t call yourself the undisputed UFC light heavyweight champion unless you beat Jones.

“Cormier deserves to be there with the belt, but every light heavyweight knows that the best fighter was sidelined,” he said. “It’s like Chad Mendes fighting Conor McGregor. They know Jose Aldo is the best, they know Aldo is the champion. Jones is the champion. Cormier is a good fighter, but Jones didn’t lose inside the Octagon.”