Jon Jones is once again at the top – and he’s loving it. The UFC heavyweight champ posted a picture of him being the pound-for-pound #1 fighter in the world longer than both Islam Makhachev and Demetrious Johnson in the process.
Jones claims that he was the p4p best for 1743 days, a record followed by Demetrious Johnson with 718 days and Islam Makhachev with 421 days. ‘Bones’ did not have to say much adding just a single emoji whilst sharing the image.
— Jonny Meat (@JonnyBones) January 2, 2025
However, as of right now, Jones is ranked 2nd in the P4P rankings, behind the lightweight champion, Makhachev. His next fight could help him peak the list again but Jones hasn’t particularly been too keen on it.
The 37-year-old is currently in the midst of a negotiation tussle with the UFC over the heavyweight title unification fight with Tom Aspinall.
However, after defending his heavyweight title by stopping Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, Jones made it clear he’s more interested in a super fight with Pereira than a title unification bout with Aspinall. Jones even said he’d retire the belt if needed. While he’s not a fan of Aspinall, Jones admitted he could be swayed – but only for “f*ck you money”.
However, UFC veteran Chael Sonnen believes that Jones will take on Aspinall and it will be the last time he graces the inside of an octagon.
Could 2025 be the year Jones retires?
Jones’ former opponent, Sonnen believes his days in the octagon are numbered. On ESPN’s Good Guy/Bad Guy, Sonnen confidently predicted that Jones would retire after facing Aspinall.
“If you want my boldest prediction, I’d say Jon Jones retires,” Sonnen said.
“I believe he’ll fight Tom Aspinall, and he’ll do better than people expect. But when that fight’s over, I think it’s his last one.”
However, that might not be the case if he wins. Earlier Pereira had claimed that the Jones fight was an inevitability but the heavyweight champion had to first win against Aspinall. Jones vs. Pereira would rake in numbers unlike ever before and so, it doesn’t seem like there will be any walking away from it.
However, there are a lot of ifs and buts for that fight to happen. Pereira himself will have to fight and defend his title against Magomed Ankalaev. Having never faced a grappler before, this will be his first taste at someone with a good ground game. If he manages to get past Ankalaev, Pereira would have had a taste of what Jones will have in store for him.
