Jon Jones Says Gustafsson Rematch An Option – Just Not In NY
After knocking out Daniel Cormier at July 29’s UFC 214 to reclaim the light heavyweight title, Jon Jones called out former heavyweight champion and WWE superstar Brock Lesnar. And while that would certainly be a lucrative fight, it doesn’t seem as if it’ll take place in the near future.
With that being said, Jones is expected to defend his 205-pound strap next, and a rematch with No. 1-ranked Alexander Gustafsson appears to make the most sense. Recently speaking on the topic, Jones admitted that it was an ‘option’:
“Every fight gets my blood flowing,” Jones told MMAjunkie. “I know how important it is to never underestimate anyone. I get up for every one. I think the Gustafsson fight is an option for us right now. We’re just going to wait and see. We’re weighing our options right now.”
Jones and Gustafsson first fought at UFC 165 in Sept. 2013 in a bout that Jones won via unanimous decision, although he was pushed to his limits in an entertaining and unforgettable five round war. More recently, “The Mauler” has picked up back-to-back victories over Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira to land back in title contention.
Having spent the majority of the previous two years on the sidelines, Jones is hoping to compete once more before the end of the year. Given that he’s a native of New York, UFC 217, which will take place on Nov. 4 from Madison Square Garden, seemed like a possible landing spot for his next fight, but he revealed that he has little interest in fighting in New York at this moment:
“To be honest, I love being from New York, but my whole thoughts and dreams of fighting in New York – they’re kind of starting to fade,” Jones said. “Looking at it from a business standpoint, it’s not a really good idea to pay 9 percent to the state of New York off the top just for fighting here. With 9 percent of every $1 million, that will add up real quick.
“I realize people from all over the world are going to watch it, whether it’s in Vegas or Canada or wherever. It would have been great to be the first person to fight at Madison Square Garden, but now that it’s happened and everything … I want to do it eventually, but it’s not something that’s a dream the way it used to be.”
Would you like to see Jones and Gustafsson run it back?
