A rivalry has been growing between Jones and UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya, which is a fight UFC President Dana White is willing to book, as long as it is under the right circumstances.
“If he gets through [Romero] then gets through Paulo Costa, then he’s got Jon Jones out there, too, which is a very interesting fun fight that probably shouldn’t happen but I’ll probably let it [happen] if they want to,” White said on The Jim Rome Show (via Damon Martin of MMA Fighting).
Adesanya first has to get past Yoel Romero, as the two will battle for the middleweight gold next month in the main event of UFC 248.
White knows that Adesanya fighting Romero makes no sense, but White says it was a bout that the champion wanted.
“Adesanya’s going into a fight right now that makes no sense,” White said. “He called out Yoel Romero, who he does not have to fight. First of all, nobody’s asking for Yoel Romero. The exact opposite. Every guy who’s fought him will tell you — every time they hit Yoel Romero, it hurt them. This is true. This is fact. From world champions to top three guys in the world will tell you this about Romero. Adesanya calls him out and says ‘I feel like this is one of the baddest dudes in the world and my legacy will not be complete without fighting this guy first.’ He could totally wait a couple more months and fight Paulo Costa like he’s supposed to. He’s taking this fight.”
UFC 247 takes place on Saturday, February 8 from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas with Jon Jones and Dominick Reyes headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
