Jon Jones goes off on 'Tiny' Curtis Blaydes: 'You've been rooting against me for years now'
With UFC Fight Night 208 just days away, Jon Jones isn’t thrilled with recent comments made by one of the event’s headliners, Curtis Blaydes.
“Jon doesn’t have one punch knockout power or five round championship experience, that’s why he’ll lose to Stipe,” Jones wrote. “Bro you literally sound ridiculous.”
The qualm stems from a recent interview in which Blaydes was asked in the lead-up to his main event Saturday vs. Tom Aspinall about the potential matchup between Jones and Stipe Miocic and how he thinks it would go.
“Jon, he hasn’t shown that one-punch knockout power,” Blaydes told MMA Fighting. “What he has shown, he is extremely creative. He’ll hit you with elbows, knees, teeps, all types of different stuff. Even on the ground, he’s aggressive. He’s looking for submissions. He’s looking to drop elbows. He brings a lot to the table, but the biggest thing he doesn’t have is the power. I think that’s always the equalizer.
“I would pick Stipe to win this. Just because he’s been in five-round heavyweight fights multiple times and he’s shown one-punch power when he knocked out Fabricio [Werdum], when he knocked out Alistair [Overeem].
In a pair of follow-up tweets, Jones took a few more jabs at Blaydes.
“That’s real, dude talking about being in the top five since 2018 like that’s a good thing.”
He later added, “Focus on your fight this weekend Tiny, you’ve been rooting against me for years now. I see you. Hating on me won’t propel you into being a champion. Less hate, more work.”
Jon doesn’t have one punch knockout power or five round championship experience, that’s why he’ll lose to Stipe. Bro you literally sound ridiculous
— BONY (@JonnyBones) July 21, 2022
That’s real, dude talking about being in the top five since 2018 like that’s a good thing. https://t.co/teOAbLYtBc
— BONY (@JonnyBones) July 21, 2022
Focus on your fight this weekend Tiny, you’ve been rooting against me for years now. I see you. Hating on me won’t propel you into being a champion. Less hate, more work
— BONY (@JonnyBones) July 21, 2022
Jones has not competed since February 2020, when he won a unanimous decision over Dominick Reyes. After a lengthy public contract dispute with the UFC, Jones vacated his light heavyweight title and announced a move to heavyweight. Since then, Jones has been preparing for a divisional debut, which is expected for late 2022 against either Miocic or UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.