Jon Jones insists money was not the main factor in his decision to move up to heavyweight
UFC legend Jon Jones insists money was not the main factor in his decision to move up to heavyweight.
Instead, he put it down to running out of opponents for him to fight at light heavyweight.
Earlier this year, it was announced that Jones will make his long-awaited return to the Octagon in the spring, ending his self-imposed two-year exile from the sport.
Jones, regarded as the greatest MMA fighter of all time, has spent the past two years piling on the pounds in anticipation of a move to heavyweight.
He is currently scheduled to fight Ciryl Gane next month in the main event of UFC 285 in Las Vegas on March 5.
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Jones, 35, has not fought since his controversial win over Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 in February 2020.
Why did Jon Jones decide to move up to heavyweight?
All three judges scored the fight in his favour.
However, many in the mixed martial arts world at the time felt the result should have gone the other way.
But he claims he didn’t really prepare properly for it because he had started to get bored of the level of opposition he was facing at 205 lbs.
“I stopped studying footage as much,” he said during an appearance on Unlocking the Cage with Jimmy Smith.
“It started to feel more like another day at the office.
“The fear was gone. I didn’t really fear these guys.”
READ MORE: Jon Jones warned Ciryl Gane will be harder fight than Francis Ngannou
Jones also admitted he was unhappy with his contract but claims there were other factors as well that convinced him to move up in weight.
Now, he’s delighted to be trying something new after staying in the same division for so many years.
He added: “I wasn’t happy with my pay, either.
“I’m stuck fighting guys like Reyes — who had been dreaming of fighting me, probably since college, and [he] was just relatively unknown to the general public. I just wanted more, I wanted to be nervous again.
“I wanted to have fear again. I think fear is healthy, and now we’re in this position. The heavyweight division has never been scarier, and I’m glad to be in the middle of it.”
READ MORE: UFC 285: Daniel Cormier reacts to Jon Jones’ praise of his commentary skills
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