Jon Jones responds to steroid rumors with a month remaining before Stipe Miocic fight: "Stuck in the mud"
Even though Jon Jones is one of the best MMA fighters in the world, his reputation has been damaged by his controversial history, which includes numerous bans for failing drug tests. Despite all that, Jones is prepared for his next fight and has recently responded to his critics, who have accused him of using steroids.
Jones will make his first title defense in a heavyweight showdown against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Ahead of his title fight, 'Bones' appeared to be in excellent shape, which piqued the interest of many, who speculated that the reigning champion was utilizing forbidden substances to acquire his physique.
That did not sit well with Jones, who resorted to social media and bashed those individuals, writing:
''Whole bunch of trolls whos dreams never came true, stuck in the mud talking about he's on steroids.''
Earlier this month, Jones took to X and posted a picture showing off his leaner body with chiseled abs, alongside a photo of himself looking out of shape. This elicited mixed reactions from MMA fans worldwide, with some applauding his efforts and others mocking him for previous doping scandals. He captioned the post:
''I’ve been secretly taking PHW.''
In his last octagon appearance at UFC 285, Jones won the vacant heavyweight title after defeating Ciryl Gane. The two-division champion was then set to defend his title against Miocic at UFC 295 last year, but was forced to pull out of the fight due to a pectoral muscle injury he sustained during training.
Despite interim champion Tom Aspinall's persistent calls for a title unification bout, Jones stated that he intends to take on Miocic next. As for Miocic, the former champion was dethroned by Francis Ngannou via second-round knockout at UFC 260 in 2021.
Tom Aspinall responds to Jon Jones' retirement remarks
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has hinted at retirement for quite some time, following his title defense against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. During his appearance at Noche UFC 306, Jones stated that his upcoming fight might be his final in the octagon
In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on his YouTube channel, Tom Aspinall discussed Jones' retirement remarks, saying:
"I have no idea. The guy is a little bit weird to me... We're talking about Jon. It's pretty obvious. There's been some stuff that he's done over the years that isn't normal behavior."
Check out Tom Aspinall's comments below (26:25):