Jon Jones says he is willing to give up the belt to face Alex Poatan, but sets a condition

Alex Poatán e Jon Jones pose for photos at UFC 306 in the Sphere. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram/UFContnt

With a huge question mark surrounding his future after his title defense against Stipe Miocic in the main fight of UFC 309, this Saturday (16), Jon Jones raised, last Monday (11), a new possibility: giving up the heavyweight belt to face Alex Poatán, as long as there is one condition.

In an interview with 'SportsNet', the heavyweight champion (up to 120,2 kg) showed himself willing to give up his category title to fight the light heavyweight champion (up to 93 kg) for the 'BMF' belt, which represents the 'toughest' fighter in the organization.

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“It would be cool to fight for the heavyweight title, but I would also happily give up the belt. I gave up the light heavyweight title. I would love to give that one up too, on my own terms, with a clear head and making a lot of money. I love the position I’m in right now. Fighting Pereira for the BMF belt would be cool. We both have belts in two weight classes and we would fight each other for the third belt. How cool would that be?” he asked.

Currently, the 'BMF' belt belongs to the former featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg) Max Holloway, who conquered it in an apotheotic victory over Justin gaethje in history UFC 300. To fulfill the wish of Jon Jones, the Ultimate would need to create a second belt of this type or remove the Hawaiian.

This whole issue involving a possible loss of the heavyweight belt (up to 120,2 kg) for Jon Jones has to do with the public's lack of interest in the champion unifying the titles in a duel against the interim champion Tom aspinall. 'Bones' justified the refusal, claiming that the creation of the interim title was a mistake.

“The interim belt shouldn’t have even been contested in the first place. The only reason the interim title existed was because I got hurt and they needed to maintain the importance of the event at Madison Square Garden. Sergei Pavlovich e Tom aspinall “They shouldn’t have fought for an interim title. It should have been just a replacement fight. A main event. The creation of the interim title was premature and now you have a bunch of people confused,” he concluded.