ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Jon Jones has options ahead of him.
The UFC light heavyweight champion was impressed with what he saw from top contender Jan Blachowicz on Saturday night at UFC on ESPN+ 25. Yet, despite thinking Blachowicz is deserving of the next title shot after knocking out Corey Anderson in the main event, Jones isn’t closing the book on a potential rematch with Dominick Reyes.
“It’s something that I definitely consider, but in order for a Dominick Reyes rematch to happen it just needs to take a few meetings with the UFC to make that happen,” Jones told reporters, including MMA Junkie, backstage at Santa Ana Star Center. “But if we don’t rematch, I’m fine with that, too. I think I won the fight, definitely won Rounds 3, 4, 5. And you know, a lot of you are giving the (judge Joe Soliz) a lot of slack saying I won 2, 3, 4, 5. I can see how he can give me 2, 3, 4, 5, but 3, 4, 5 I stand by.”
Jones and Reyes fought to a unanimous decision last week in the UFC 247 main event. It was a controversial call, as many had Reyes up on the scorecards.
Either way, Jones is still champion and needs a challenger to defend his belt against. That man could be Blachowicz, who’s now on a three-fight winning streak following his win over Anderson.
“Jan has been looking great,” Jones said. “The way he knocked out Luke Rockhold, Corey Anderson – I mean, both of those guys are known to not be able to take a punch, but he’s pulling the trigger, and he’s landing those big shots. So I think he’s very deserving (of a title shot).
“It was an awesome fight. I thought Jan Blachowicz did an awesome job, his boxing looked great. Corey seemed slow tonight. It seemed like something wasn’t clicking there. He seemed slower and more hesitant on his takedowns. Honestly, I think he was more worried about fighting me than Jan Blachowicz, and he learned a valuable lesson on what happens when you look past opponents.”
Speaking with Laura Sanko on the ESPN+ post-show, Jones said he could see the UFC going the Blachowicz route over a Reyes rematch for his next challenge.
“I could totally see the UFC matching us up with each other,” Jones said. “What better way to make a claim for the title than to get a knockout like that. I got a feeling the UFC’s gonna be giving me a call real soon.”
Jon Jones says Jan Blachowicz 'very deserving' of title shot but open to Dominick Reyes rematch
