Current UFC heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, wanted (another) six months off before committing to his Tom Aspinall title unification fight. The hard-hitting Brit is already the longest reigning interim champion in the history of the promotion, so what’s another few months on the calendar?
Jones appears to be headed overseas to coach Russian TUF knockoff ALF Global against UFC veteran Nate Diaz. Details of the show (including streaming options) were not disclosed; however, late third or early fourth quarter seems like a reasonable estimate, putting the release in line with Jones’ UFC return.
Jones and Diaz are not the first UFC fighters to coach the combat sports reality show. UFC middleweight Khamzat Chimaev and UFC lightweight Arman Tsarukyan are veterans of the program, which also featured this embarrassing incident with former featherweight titleholder, Aljamain Sterling.
Maybe it was revenge for this last-minute snub.
Jones, 37, has not competed since retiring Stipe Miocic atop the UFC 309 fight card last November, and seems content to let Aspinall twist in the wind. The promotion is suffering from a superstar shortage (according to this contender), which is probably why “Bones” is getting the extra leeway from UFC.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
