WATCH: Jon Jones playfully grapples with rising female wrestler Kennedy Blades
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones' wrestling is second to none. 'Bones' was the first man ever to take down former Olympic wrestler and UFC two-division champion Daniel Cormier inside the octagon.
With his heavyweight debut slated against Ciryl Gane at UFC 285, it looks like the 35-year-old is working even more on his already formidable grappling prowess.
Ciryl Gane will face Jon Jones for the vacant heavyweight title at UFC 285 💪 https://t.co/iWy2MKMUiM
In a recent Instagram video, the MMA legend can be seen engaging in a playful grappling session with rising women's wrestling prospect Kennedy Blades.
The wrestling bout seemingly left the young prospect impressed with Jones' abilities as she later posted the clip to her Instagram, with the caption:
"He’s a lot stronger than I thought 😭"
Blades is one of the most promising up-and-coming American female wrestlers. According to USA Wrestling Membership, the 19-year-old is currently ranked No.2 in the 68kg category.
Her major spoils include a gold medal at the 2021 Junior World Championships. According to a report by FloWrestling, she finished second in the US 2020 Olympic teams trial at just 17 years of age.
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Jon Jones, meanwhile, is considered by many to be the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. He holds a stellar MMA record of 26 wins against one loss and one no-contest.
The American holds the record for being the youngest fighter to have captured a UFC title. Interestingly, he has had more title bouts than non-title fights in his career so far.
Aljamain Sterling believes wrestling is Jon Jones' trump card for his heavyweight debut
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling believes that Jon Jones needs to mix in takedowns to have the upper hand against Ciryl Gane in their heavyweight title fight at UFC 285.
In a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, 'Funk Master' opined that the French national is going to edge the fight on the feet. He believes that 'Bones' will have to mix in wrestling like how former champion Francis Ngannou did against Gane at UFC 270 to have a chance of victory:
"The longer the fight stays on the feet in those first, second and third rounds, I think it's more in favor of Gane. If Jon is mixing in takedowns, it makes it more tricky, but Jones is like I'm going to beat you at your own game. I could see Ciryl Gane kind of showcasing why he was having a really good time with Francis [Ngannou] in their fight, until Francis was able to take him down."
Watch Aljamain Sterling talk about Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane below:
Based on live betting odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, Jones is the -120 favorite over Gane, who is the +100 underdog for UFC 285.