Alex Pereira backs Jon Jones ahead of UFC 285 return: ‘He’s really coming to dominate’

UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira is backing Jon Jones to become a two-division champion at UFC 285

Former multi-time UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones is expected to challenge former interim UFC heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane for the vacant UFC heavyweight championship at UFC 285, going down on March 4, 2023.

This fight booking was a result of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou‘s recent release from the promotion.

Jon Jones was expected to face Ngannou for the title on a couple of occasions, an incredible match up that never came to fruition, so now we have the most dominant champion in mixed martial arts history facing the no. 1 heavyweight contender, and Alex Pereira likes Jones’ chances to capture the throne as he recently stated in an interview with MMAFighting:

“I think he’s really coming to dominate. It’s never easy, but I think this fight will be much harder than if he had fought Ngannou. Ngannou is stronger and would want to trade punches with Jon Jones, and Jon Jones is very experienced, has great defense, so I think Jon Jones would beat Ngannou (easier).

“This next fight (against Gane) is a bit harder for him, but I also think he wins. It’s a bit more difficult because (Gane) is smart, and a bit more scared in a good way, not to come trading with Jon Jones, which makes him a more difficult fight.”

This answer is a tad surprising coming from Pereira, who’s a fellow kickboxing champion like Gane.

Prior to transitioning to MMA full-time, Alex Pereira was a two-division GLORY kickboxing champion, the first ever in fact, and he left the sport in 2021 with a record of 33-7 (21 knockouts).

Ciryl Gane on the other hand went 13-0 (9 knockouts) as a professional kickboxer, having won the AFMT national championship prior to his full-time switch to MMA in 2018.

Since then, Gane has gone 11-1, only losing a narrow decision to Francis Ngannou himself, whilst laying claim to the interim UFC championship, as well as the TKO heavyweight championship earlier on, a title he won in his first fight before defending it twice and joining the UFC with a record of just 3-0.

Then we have Jon Jones, who’s 26-1 (1 NC) as a professional, his only defeat coming via DQ in a fight he was dominating. He came to the UFC at just 6-0, as we’ve seen him go undefeated through 22 fights in the worlds leading promotion, and he’s 14-0 in world title fights coming in.

Is Alex Pereira right, does Jon Jones beat Ciryl Gane to become the UFC heavyweight champion?

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