Demetrius Johnson says Jon Jones could have been another hero if he really wanted to.
Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt in 2020 to move up to the heavyweight division.
Jon ‘Bones’ Jones (27-1 MMA) returned to Octagon after a 3-year absence when he entered the cage with Cyryl Gane (11-2 MMA) this past March. It was at UFC 285 where the heavyweight main event featured Jones vs. Jane at the T-Mobile Arena facility in Paradise, Nevada. The result was a guillotine victory at 2:04 of round 1, which made 35-year-old Jones the new UFC heavyweight champion.
Demetrius Johnson (24-4 MMA) believes that there was no need for Jones to carry extra weight and move up to heavyweight.
Speaking to ‘The MMA Hour’, Johnson said of Jones:
“Honestly, I didn’t think he needed to carry that much weight to do what he just did. He could have done all that at 205. At the end of the day, it’s not like he’s up against a huge jujitsu wrestler in the heavyweight division, is it? Jon Jones is tall, He has the range advantage for most of his fights. Look at “DC” (Daniel Cormier). “DC’s like 5-foot-9, 265 (lbs), and he was able to do whatever he wanted.”
Continuing, Demetrius Johnson paid tribute to Jon Jones, saying (h/r MMAmania):
“I’m glad to see he’s back. I think he’s the goat (the greatest of all time) because of all the things he’s been able to do and all the things he’s done on the outside… whatever. For him to come back and do that at Heavyweight, I think he didn’t have to. To go up to Heavyweight to do it. He could have done it at 205 and hold both belts. He could have been another champion if he really wanted to. He looked great.”
Johnson, 36, is currently preparing for his One Championship match with Adriano Moraes (20-4 MMA) on Friday, May 5 at the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colorado.
As for Jones, he is expected to defend his first heavyweight title later this year against Stipe Miocic (20-4 MMA).
Do you agree with the Johnsons’ analogy that Jones didn’t need to move up to heavyweight?
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