It seems that Jon Jones is amused by the change of course of Israel Adesanya when it comes to a potential match of much anticipated zeal.
Adesanya (20-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) has said for more than a year that his final plan is to meet Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) in the octagon in July, ideally at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas in front of a potentially record crowd for “the biggest fight in UFC history.” This was said, however, long before the COVID-19 pandemic took over the world.
Ahead of Saturday’s UFC 259 event, where middleweight champion Adesanya will switch to lightweight to challenge Jan Blachowicz for the second band, “The Last Stylebender” said a confrontation with Jones in December now feels more likely, mainly for that he thinks it is obligatory for a crowd to be present.
“Unfortunately, it may not be summer or July, but there is still December,” Adesanya told ESPN. “It simply came to our notice then. All I know is that this value (against Jon Jones) needs a lot. I can’t do this in an empty arena. ”
Jones, who released the title in July, Adesanya will challenge Blachowicz for the UFC Apex head-to-head fight in Las Vegas, is currently on track to make his heavyweight debut this year. All the signs indicate the challenge of the winner of the fight for the title on March 27 between Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou.
“Bones” has said several times that he is not so worried about Adesanya’s fight and certainly does not follow it. But that doesn’t mean he still doesn’t like to make fun of his rival, exactly what happened when he noticed Adesanya’s comments about their fight (via Twitter):
I think the energy of the cartoons will have Wrestling and Jujitsu ready by December
If the stars line up perfectly and both Jones and Adesanya win their next fights, a fight in December could prove realistic. For now, however, it seems that they will continue to photograph each other from a distance.