UFC superstar Jon Jones received a sobering warning from former two-division champion Henry Cejudo about the biggest threat for him.
Jones has remained out of action for over two years since his last outing with Dominick Reyes in Feb. 2020. After relinquishing his title at 205-pounds, the former light heavyweight king has been in preparations to make his debut in the heavyweight division. He got linked for a potential bout with the reigning division king Francis Ngannou, but no concrete developments have come yet.
Ahead of his return, Jones worked with Cejudo, who has been looking to come back to competition himself and reported positive results from the sessions.
In a Sep. 5 video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Cejudo shared his thoughts on UFC Paris. He was impressed with the former interim heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane after his knockout win over Tai Tuivasa in the main event of the night. He shared that he texted Jones to warn him of the emerging talent that could pose a challenge to him.
“His angles were on point. His distance was on point. His investment in the body to break somebody down to eventually get the knockout was on point,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel via MMA Junkie. “This dude is a threat for everybody. I immediately texted Jon Jones: ‘Hey man, watch out for this dude.’ You have to really plan for this dude.
“I almost feel after looking at that last fight like he is a bigger threat than Francis Ngannou for a guy like Jon Jones.”
Cejudo Heaped Praises on Gane for His UFC Paris Performance
Gane recovered from an early knockdown in the second round to finish his opponent. The technical striker is renowned for his beautiful touch-and-move style of fighting. Following a risky start, Gane displayed his skillset to the fullest, working the body of Tuivasa perfectly to set up the final blow.
Cejudo heaped praises on Gane for his incredible performance.
“Ciryl Gane is the real deal,” Cejudo said. “Somebody that can chop (Tuivasa) down like that and eventually finish him, that’s the type of stuff that I like to see – investment in the body, investment in legs, to eventually finish his opponent. Beautiful work.
Cejudo Says the Heavyweight Division Is Looking Good
The heavyweight division of the UFC has seen a dip in popularity compared to its earlier days of hosting the likes of Frank Mir, Cain Velasquez, and Brock Lesnar. Widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight in the promotion’s history, Stipe Miocic has not got booked in a fight since Mar. 2021.
Miocic got rumored to welcome Jones to the division for an interim title match, while Ngannou was expected to sit out for the rest of the year. However, the contest did not get confirmed. With Jones eyeing to make his highly awaited debut and the recent surge of promising upcoming fighters like Tuivasa and Gane, Cejudo believes the heavyweight division looks better than ever.
“The heavyweight division has never been hotter before, especially now that Jon Jones is in there. So it’s an exciting time. But I still believe that Jon Jones is the king of kings, and for that reason, all you heavyweights, you’ve got to study Jon Jones.”
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Jon Jones Warned About ‘Bigger Threat’ in UFC Return