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The chances of a fight between Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones have certainly dipped, however, there is still no love lost between the two UFC superstars.
Reigniting his rivalry with the former UFC light heavyweight champion, Adesanya suggested Jones isn't even considering fighting in the heavyweight division.
"If you could say, I don't think we are ever gonna see Jon Jones fight at heavyweight," Israel Adesanya told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. "F**k, he has been saying it since 2013. You either get it done or you don't. I jumped up (to light heavyweight) within three years of being in the company and I jumped in the division ahead of me. The guy who was up there respects me. He's the champion up there and he gave me my props."
According to Adesanya, switching weight classes is not everyone's cup of tea, including Jon Jones, who 'The Last Stylebender' says is "getting fat for no reason."
"I just think that it's not something that anyone can do. And he's getting fat for no reason now."
When asked why Jones is preferring to sit on the sidelines, Adesanya continued to mock his arch-rival. The 185-pound king said 'Bones' would be the right person to ask the question to, but suggested the former champ probably feels like "he is too big" to make an appearance on Helwani's show.
Watch Israel Adesanya's comments about Jon Jones during his appearance on The MMA Hour below (from 2:54:20):
Israel Adesanya's beef with Jon Jones
Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones have been targeting each other for well over two years now. Rumors of a potential fight at light heavyweight between the pair started surfacing in 2019, and Dana White was more than happy to try and bring that scrap into fruition.
In August 2020, Jones confirmed that he has no interest in continuing his run in the 205-pound weight class, thus pouring cold water on his potential fight with Adesanya. Still, 'The Last Stylebender' is positive about challenging Jones in the future.
The 32-year-old middleweight champion is coming off an impressive win over Marvin Vettori. He is expected to take on Robert Whittaker next in what will be his fourth title defense.
