Jon Jones: I Just Needed To Let Everyone Call Me A Chicken Until I Negotiated My Contract

After a long-winded back-and-forth that saw multiple twists and turns, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones recently signed on for his long-awaited rematch with Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 178 on September 27.

“Bones” was originally announced as fighting Gustafsson at UFC 177 on August 30, but the promotion apparently broke the news without discussing it with Jones first. The champion appeared on today’s The MMA Hour to discuss his disdain for how the UFC handled the situation:

“Originally, I just kind of identified it as being like a strong arm technique on their part. Get fans pushing for a fight prematurely. I hadn’t even heard that date before…I thought it was unprofessional, a bully tactic.”

Jones continued on with his viewpoint of the situation, noting that it did come down to a contract dispute. UFC President Dana White denied that in the media, offering the belief that Jones instead wanted to fight Daniel Cormier, but “Bones” said he just had to wait until the bout got worked out:

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“It looks like that’s what they were doing for sure. It was annoying but I just needed to weather that storm and let everyone call me a chicken for a few weeks until I got to get in there and negotiate the contract.”

With a later date now in place, host Ariel Helwani asked Jones about the rescheduling. He believed the UFC announced the bout to get the fans stirring, and it worked. However, Jones said he couldn’t pay attention to that:

“It wasn’t that it was tough, it was just something that I knew I had to do. I knew that them announcing the fight early was to get fans harassing me, pretty much. I just had to never mind the masses and do what was best for me and my family.”

But he did pay attention to that, posting a video to his Instagram account that featured him saying it was “his career and not yours.” The dominant champion may be embracing the role of heel, and he even said that deleting his videos gets people talking more than not.

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But aside from all the contrived speculation and trash talk, Jones will finally rematch Gustafsson after their UFC 165 classic, which is currently ranked as quite possibly the greatest UFC light heavyweight bout to ever take place.

While the rematch has been rumored for Toronto, Las Vegas, and perhaps even Sweden, Jones was eager to clarify that it would not be in “The Mauler’s” backyard:

“It won’t be Sweden. No chance. I have no reason to. I’m the champ and he’s the challenger, I don’t find it appropriate for me to go to his back yard.”

That makes sense, as it would be unlikely for Jones to travel overseas to face an opponent he’s already beaten, albeit controversially. What do you think will happen when these two elite fighters lock horns again?

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