Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane is the most undeserving heavyweight title fight, claims Chael Sonnen

Jon Jones is set to return from a three-year hiatus at UFC 285 this weekend as he makes his heavyweight debut against Ciryl Gane. Former UFC middleweight and light heavyweight title challenger Chael Sonnen recently slammed the heavyweight title fight and the state of the division.

Speaking to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Sonnen highlighted how Francis Ngannou's UFC exit left the heavyweight division in an awkward state:

"I don't know if we've had a less deserving heavyweight [title] match in a meaningful period of time. We've got a heavyweight that we were plagued with that didn't even want to be here. He [Francis Ngannou] wants to go over and be a boxer, but we've got him. He won the belt and we've got to sit with him."

Sonnen then slammed the Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane title fight and further criticized the lack of depth in the division:

"Now, we get a guy that's 1-1 in his last two versus a guy that quit the sport three [years] ago and has never competed in the division. As far as where we're at in the heavyweight division, it's pretty slim pickings... We had the youngest ever UFC champion who's now the oldest No.1 contender in the UFC. That's just the reality."

Catch Chael Sonnen's comments on the UFC 285 heavyweight title fight below:

A monumental fight between Jon Jones and Francis Ngannou fell through after 'The Predator' was released from his UFC contract. While Ngannou targets free agency, Jones is looking to become a two-division champion and further solidify his legacy as one of the greats.

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Jon Jones opens up on delaying heavyweight debut

Jon Jones has been teasing his heavyweight debut for quite some time now. It's been almost a decade since Jones first discussed the idea of moving to heavyweight and the wait will finally be over this weekend.

After his final 205-pound title defense against Dominick Reyes in 2020, Jones opted to vacate the title and spent the next three years bulking up in preparation for his heavyweight move.

'Bones' will take on Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 285 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, this Saturday for the vacant heavyweight strap. Speaking to ESPN MMA, the longtime light heavyweight champion revealed why his move up took so long, emphasizing that money wasn't the reason for the delay:

"The prolonging of my heavyweight debut had nothing to do with money or being upset with the UFC or anything like that. I just wanted to be at my best when I did come back. I felt like I was ready to go about a year ago. We needed to figure out opponents and there was just a lot of moving parts in the UFC, but now we're here. We got Ciryl Gane, and I feel like all the stars are just aligned for me right now."

Catch Jon Jones' comments below (1:39):