UFC president Dana White says Jon Jones will get the winner of the upcoming heavyweight title bout between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou.
Jones vacated the UFC light heavyweight title last summer, announcing a move up to heavyweight for 2021 after a decade of dominance at 205lbs. Some thought he might even skip by Ngannou in the title shot queue, but the UFC is rightfully giving Ngannou the next crack at the belt. It was revealed over the weekend that the UFC is targeting Miocic and Ngannou to hold their rematch at UFC 260 on March 27, and Jones may face the winner of that bout.
Speaking to Sportsnet in a recent interview, White confirmed that Jones is in line to get a title shot against the winner of UFC 260’s Miocic vs. Ngannou.
“Heavyweight. Jon Jones is going to move to heavyweight. We’re going to have Stipe vs. Francis, and the winner of that will probably fight Jon Jones,” White said.
Asked why Jones wants to move up in weight, White offered several theories as to why “Bones” is looking to move up and win a second UFC title. He also praised Jones for being one of the few fighters to actively seek a match against Ngannou, a fight that would be next should he dethrone Miocic at UFC 260.
“The guy’s been the king of the light heavyweight division forever. I think he thinks it’s time to move up to heavyweight. He knows his body, he knows his abilities, he knows better than anybody else does. But it’s impressive. Let me tell you, who wants to fight Francis Ngannou? The answer is nobody, okay? Nobody wants to fight that guy. But Jon Jones does. Pretty impressive,” White said.
After an up-and-down year in 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, the UFC is hoping to have a huge year for the company in 2021. With the return of Jones, Conor McGregor, and possibly Khabib Nurmagomedov, White is very excited for what is to come in 2021 for the world’s leading MMA promotion.
“Me and Jon Jones have been (butting heads) for 10 years. We had probably the best conversation we’ve ever had since we’ve known each other around the holidays. And to me, he seems like he’s in the right place. He’s doing all the right things right now, he’s saying all the right things. If everything plays out for us the way that it’s looking, in our 2021 we’re going to see a lot of Jon Jones, a lot of Conor, and maybe some Khabib,” White said.
Do you agree with Dana White giving Jon Jones an immediate title shot against the winner of Stipe Miocic vs. Francis Ngannou?