There’s not much of a case for Jon Jones as the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world anymore. But there was a time when he was right on top. And when the P4P crown was taken from him by former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Jones had raised a lot of hue and cry over how unjust it was. And now, UFC veteran Chael Sonnen has commented on the “ruthlessness” in Jones’ reaction at the time.
Khabib rose to the pound-for-pound No. 1 ranking after defeating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254. At the time, Jones had called the Dagestani out, poking that he is yet to fight anyone significant other than Conor McGregor.
After Khabib fought his fight in October 2020, he called it a day with a perfect 29-0 record. He then staked his claim as the #1 on the P4P list, requesting the fans to push for his elevation. The UFC obliged.
Jones had reacted with a series of tweets in which he threw a ‘tantrum’. He wrote that Khabib’s elevation in the P4P list was all the more upsetting because the UFC would demote him. That, he felt, was an insult.
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Sonnen said the incident, the exchange of words, and the timing (just after the death of Khabib’s father) provided a glimpse into the real Jones.
“Now, you are in the death of Khabib’s career, which largely had to do with the death of his father. Jon Jones knew those things… (But) he spoke up and he was furious. And I loved it about Jon. I loved it because he gave us a glimpse into who he is truly as a competitor and he is ruthless and he will operate without heart and he doesn’t want some of it. He wants to take it all.”
But, fast forward to 2024, is that ruthless-heartless competitor still around?
Jones: GOAT or Duck?
Despite UFC president Dana White’s insistence that Jones is the P4P No. 1 fighter in the world right now, the fact remains that he has only fought once in the last four years. What makes the decline even more glaring is the undisputed heavyweight champion’s refusal to fight the interim champion, Tom Aspinall.
Jones claims that Aspinall has not done anything of note in his career to warrant his attention. Just that the British fighter has. Aspinall is a world champion, who has defended the title more than the times Jones has in recent years.
Jones, instead, wants to fight for the light heavyweight title against Alex Pereira after he is through with Stipe Miocic at UFC 309.
He has even offered to drop the heavyweight title. This came after former middleweight champion Michael Bisping called for the belt to be stripped if Jones refused to fight the interim champion.
Despite the criticism, even from UFC legends like Daniel Cormier, Jones refuses to entertain any conversation about fighting Aspinall.
“I’ve been the main event my whole career… Tom is late. I don’t know if he went the amateur route, but I’ve been here.”
This has led to the MMA community accusing the supposed GOAT of ducking. One fan wished Miocic would win the title at UFC 309 and said, “Jon Jones’ excuse to duck mfs is ‘I am a legend. I am the goat. I don’t have to fight them’ bro is unbearable. Stipe gotta save us“.
Another fan brought up Jones’ record in the last five years while criticizing: “Jones has fought Gane, Reyes, Santos and Anthony Smith. GOAT my dingle dangles. Dude has undone so much of the credit he built up in 20 years within the last 5 years and ducking Aspinall is a terrible look.”
One fan wanted Jones to remember the laws of the sport. “Someone should remind this clown that Aspinall is the interim belt holder at the weight class in which quacky duck Jones holds the belt as a hostage.”
Many simply let Jones know what they thought of him. One person suggested, “Everyone attending UFC 309 should bring duck calls for Jones walkout“.
From the looks of it, Jones’ legacy has hit iffy grounds. He can still go for a fight against Aspinall if he retains his title at UFC 309. But if he doesn’t, the GOAT will have a hard time countering the “ducking” allegations.
