Jairzinho Rozenstruik excited about Jon Jones at heavyweight, hopes their paths cross

Jairzinho Rozenstruik is excited about an imminent addition to the UFC heavyweight division.

The burgeoning contender is looking forward to seeing Jon Jones move up to his weight class. Jones, who’s considered by many the greatest MMA fighter of all time, vacated his light heavyweight belt to move up to heavyweight. The UFC has yet to book Jones in his 265-pound debut, but the 33-year-old is expected to fight sometime this year.

Rozenstruik (11-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) sees Jones’ move to heavyweight as a big motivator for his career, given the skill caliber and prestige that Jones brings to the table.

“It’s exciting and it’s a big motivation Jon Jones in the heavyweight division,” Rozenstruik told MMA Junkie. “Because you know, that guy is one of the best and he’s going to come in and try to do his thing. You as a fighter in the heavyweight division train hard and you have to make sure that if you get that fight, you win.

“You don’t want to go in there and do something crazy and lose the fight. You want to go in there and win, it doesn’t matter what it takes. For me, it’s a big motivation.”

Rozenstruik is booked to fight Ciryl Gane at a UFC Fight Night event on March 13. The Surinamese competitor looks to build off his technical knockout win over former champion Junior Dos Santos last August.

Although Rozenstruik has his hands full against Gane, the top-five heavyweight would love to cross paths with Jones at some point of his UFC career.

“Yeah, that would be nice,” Rozenstruik said. “I mean, he’s the greatest of all-time. Everyone wants to fight the greatest of all time and see where you’re at in your career.

“If you get that fight you’re going to be even more motivated, and yeah, you would be working harder for what’s coming. Jon Jones is one of the best, but that doesn’t mean that you want to lose against Jon Jones. You want to win against the best. To be the best, you have to beat the best.”