Who should Jon Jones fight when his suspension is up in July 2017? Should he get an immediate title shot or would you book him against someone else?
ADAM TINDAL, MMATorch contributor
I’d love to see Jon Jones come back and get the title shot right away. Sure, he made some very immature choices over the last couple years and dug himself into a deep trench, but we all know he’s the best the division has ever seen. Forcing him into a contenders’ fight just seems like a bit of waste to me.
MICHAEL HISCOE, MMATorch contributor
I would urge UFC not to book Jon Jones in a title fight, and do not book Jon Jones against Daniel Cormier. Jones needs to show that he’s going to stick around and stay out of trouble before you risk putting a title on him. Also, because of all the false starts, I feel the public has grown tired of the Jones-Cormier feud and it needs to be put to bed for a while, regardless of who holds the championship next summer. When he returns in July, I would book Jon Jones in a rematch against Alexander Gustafsson. It would be a rematch of one of the greatest fights in UFC history and Jones’s toughest fight of his career. A win for Jones there would earn him some support back and then you can consider a title fight late next year.
CHRIS KING, MMATorch contributor
I have had quite enough of Jon Jones. As far as I am concerned he should start from the beginning again after wasting everyone’s damn time. To start with, give him Henrique da Silva. Once he gets past him, tell him to fight Jimi Manuwa. Once those two have been easily defeated, I will be ready to talk about him becoming a championship contender again. Not before.
NICK GRINUPS, MMATorch contributor
Jon Jones needs to come back with a fresh start, and that fresh start should be at heavyweight. Depending on what happens in the next seven months, Jones should face the UFC Heavyweight Champion and let the Light Heavyweight Division sort itself out. If by the end of 2017 or early 2018, light heavyweight makes sense (if Anthony Johnson is the champion). Then maybe he can try to be a two-weight division champion. I think it is good for sport to have fighters compete in different weight classes, especially if they already cleaned out the division.
MATTHEW PETERSON, MMATorch contributor
Jon Jones should not get an immediate title shot when he returns. He’s proven how reckless and irresponsible he is with his private and professional life and needs to earn his way back up. When he returns, give him a rematch against “The Mauler” Alexander Gustafsson and see how that plays out. It will solve the question of if Gustafsson can ever fight for the title again and if Jones is still the fighter he was before his suspension.
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