Jon Jones has bulked up to just 10lbs under the UFC heavyweight limit as he continues to prepare for his debut at the weight class.
Jones, who is widely considered the great mixed martial artist of all time, has been preparing for a move to heavyweight for over two years. The former pound-for-pound No.1 hasn't fought since defend his light heavyweight belt for the last time in February 2020.
He was linked a to heavyweight title fight against current undisputed champion Francis Ngannou last year, but UFC president Dana White claimed Jones was requesting $30million for the fight, something the UFC star later disputed.
Jones' training partner, former UFC fighter Yorgan De Castro, has revealed Jones has bulked up to a massive 255lbs for his debut at heavyweight. "He’s been waiting two years for this," De Castro said of Jones to Trocacao Franca.
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"He’s walking around at 255 pounds but is so strong and cardio will be the key. He has so much cardio. He hits pads for two hours and doesn’t slow down."
“You’re never comfortable with him in sparring. If you start to get comfortable with the hands, he wrestles you. If you want to get up, he throws elbows and knees. Not many people can do that at heavyweight. Everybody has heavy hands, but not many people can combine wrestling and jiu-jitsu and Jones’ versatility will make the difference.”
Ngannou is sidelined with a knee injury for the rest of 2022, leaving Jones pencilled in to fight former champion Stipe Miocic for the interim title. The match-up is not yet official, but De Castro has backed Jones to beat Miocic if it does take place.
“I don’t see anyone touching the man. His wrestling is very, very, very good. His jiu-jitsu is great. It’s hard to touch him [on the feet]. His distance is great. I don’t think I’ve touched him once. I walked forward and never touched him," De Castro continued.
“I don’t see anyone else at heavyweight with a good enough wrestling or ground game. If they have good wrestling, Jones will be superior on the feet. The Stipe fight will be perfect. Stipe weighs the same and has good boxing."
Leaked photos from the UFC's matchmaking room showed that Jones and Miocic were linked to fight at UFC 277 on July 30. However, Miocic has stated he will not be ready be the summer and expects the fight to happen in September.
