UFC president Dana White has made it clear that Jon Jones will fight for the heavyweight title in 2021.
Fans now have even more reason to eagerly await the conclusion of the huge fight between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou in March, with White confirming that the winner at UFC 260 will score big. In particular, the UFC president indicated that regardless of the outcome, it will be Jones who gets the winner of Stipe vs. Ngannou 2.
Miocic captured a thrilling win over the 2X multi-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 252. However, given the injuries sustained, Miocic has been taking time off to get back into optimal shape. Specifically, the fire fighting heavyweight indicated that he sustained injuries to his eyes in both of the Cormier fights. Despite the damage received, Miocic has proved age is just a number as he continues to dominate at the highest levels.
The Shadow of Jon Jones Looms Even At Heavyweight
White recently spoke to TMZ about the heavyweight title picture, and had the following to say about Jon Jones and his heavyweight future inside the UFC.
“We know what he wants,” White says, “He wants the winner of Stipe [Miocic] and Francis [Ngannou], so that fight has got to happen first. It should happen this year. It depends if that fight with Stipe and Francis goes off before summer. Then we could have [Jones vs. the champ] happen in the summertime.”
Since Jones relinquished his light heavyweight belt, many wondered if he would get an immediate title shot at heavyweight. The answer would appear to be yes, of course, following the conclusion of UFC 260. Prior to moving up and dropping his belt, Jones continued his dominance at 205lbs but was thought to be slowing down. Most notably, Dominick Reyes believed Jones barely made it out of their fight with the victory. Jones also had an incredibly tough test in his match-up with Thiago Santos.
We’ll know soon enough how “Bones” fares at heavyweight it seems.
