UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is once again teasing a move to the heavyweight fold.
The longtime champion has flirted with the idea of moving up a weight class on numerous times in the past. Last year, he suggested that he was going to challenge Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title but later admitted that he wasn’t truly invested in the idea — this time, though, he says that he wants to test the waters at heavyweight against a fighter who is of a similar weight.
I’d love to have an exhibition fight at the catchweight of 220lbs before moving up to heavyweight. Who wants to take that L?
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) May 12, 2020
“I’d love to have an exhibition fight at the catchweight of 220lbs before moving up to heavyweight,” Jones wrote on Twitter. “Who wants to take that L?”
The statement is a slightly confusing one, given that any fight at 220-pounds would indeed be conducted within the heavyweight division by default. The 220-pound weight, though, has been mooted repeatedly by fighters who say that the disparity between light heavyweight and heavyweight is too large a gap, leading to some calling for a ‘cruiserweight’ division to be established.
Jones last competed in early February where he won a tight decision against Dominick Reyes in Houston, Texas and has been linked to a rematch with the previously undefeated challenger. Jan Blachowicz, fresh from a trio of wins against Corey Anderson, Jacare Souza and Luke Rockhold, is also understood to be in the mix.
Another potential foe for Jones is middleweight champion Israel Adesnaya. The two champions have been embroiled in a months-long social media feud, with the Kiwi 185-pound champ forecasting that the two will meet inside the cage during International Fight Week next summer.
Whatever the identify of Jones’ next opponent ends up being, it is clear that the light heavyweight champion has a lot of options. After a decade of dominance at 205-pounds though, there have been growing calls to see Jones compete outside of what is assumed to be his comfort zone.
And yet again, Jones appears open to the challenge — but whether this becomes a reality is another thing.
