5 reasons why Jon Jones' move to heavyweight could end in failure

According to reports this week, it looks like former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ move to heavyweight is finally on. It’s been suggested he’ll be facing former heavyweight kingpin Stipe Miocic in September.

Jon Jones’ move to heavyweight has been talked about for a long time now. Can ‘Bones’ really make a successful run in the heavier division, or will he find things harder than he might imagine?

Until we see him step into the octagon, it’s honestly hard to say. Unfortunately for Jones, there could be a handful of issues that might hold him back.

With that in mind, here are five reasons why Jon Jones’ move to the heavyweight division could be destined for failure.

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#5. Jon Jones might’ve left his move to heavyweight too late

Jones has not fought for well over two years, with his last bout against Dominick Reyes coming in 2020

Despite former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz's claims, ring rust is a very real issue for any fighter who takes time away from the octagon, whether their absence comes via injury, suspension or a self-imposed hiatus.

In that sense, there’s a definite chance that Jon Jones has simply left his move to the heavyweight division too late. He may have been away for too long to come back in any kind of strong form.

Jones hasn’t fought since his final UFC light heavyweight title defense against Dominick Reyes, way back in February 2020.

Since that time, there have been nearly 100 UFC events, and both the light heavyweight and heavyweight titles have changed hands twice.

Essentially, in the world of the UFC, time stops for no man, even an all-time great like ‘Bones’. If his planned fight with Stipe Miocic does go down in September, it’ll be nearly three years since he stepped into the octagon. Miocic, meanwhile, will be returning from a lengthy layoff of his own. It’s hard to imagine Jones being able to get right back into the groove.

The truth is that had Jones simply moved up to heavyweight in the summer of 2020 as he initially planned – rather than get into a spat with the UFC over his pay – he might’ve found success. As it is, there’s a definite chance he’s left things too late.

#4. Jon Jones’ physical gifts might not provide him with such an advantage at heavyweight

Jon Jones' lanky build and long reach might not be so advantageous at heavyweight

Jon Jones is almost certainly the greatest light heavyweight fighter in the history of MMA. With wins over the likes of Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, Glover Teixeira and Rashad Evans, it’s safe to say that his resume is almost untouchable.

However, while ‘Bones’ always possessed incredible skills, a great deal of the success he found in the octagon over the years came thanks to his physical gifts.

At 6’4”, Jones was always one of the taller 205lbers on the UFC roster. More importantly, his 84.5” reach was basically unparalleled by any other light heavyweight, enabling ‘Bones’ to abuse his foes from a distance without being caught in return.

Considering he regularly cut a decent amount of weight to make the light heavyweight division’s 205lbs cut-off, it’s hardly surprising that no fighter was able to overpower, let alone defeat, him.

At heavyweight, though, these physical gifts won’t provide him with the same kind of advantage. Sure, he’ll still hold a reach advantage over some of the larger fighters in the UFC, but it’s not likely to be quite so telling.

In fights with Francis Ngannou, Curtis Blaydes and Alexander Volkov, for instance, Jones would only hold a very slight reach advantage.

Furthermore, against the UFC’s top heavyweights, ‘Bones’ would certainly be the smaller man overall, something he simply wouldn’t be used to following his run at 205lbs.

Overall, Jones’ frame could translate well to the larger weight class, but it certainly wouldn’t provide him with the huge advantages it did at light heavyweight.

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#3. Jon Jones might be making an error in not taking a tune-up fight

Should Jon Jones be facing an easier opponent than Stipe Miocic in his first heavyweight bout?

Whenever a fighter moves to a new weight division in the UFC, whether they’re moving up or down, it’s usually important to get off on the right foot with a win. With that considered, most fighters switching classes tend to at least try to take a tune-up fight.

That doesn’t appear to be the case for Jon Jones. It looks very likely that his first fight as a heavyweight will be against Stipe Miocic, who is not only a former UFC heavyweight champion, but a fighter widely recognised as the UFC’s greatest-ever heavyweight.

Miocic is likely to be 40-years-old by the time the fight comes around. Regardless, he’s still a remarkably tricky opponent for anyone to take on in their first bout as a heavyweight – let alone for Jones, who hasn’t fought since February 2020.

The ridiculous thing is that there are plenty of potential opponents in the division who match up with Jones really well. On paper at least, names like Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa would provide him with a somewhat easier test.

Miocic, on the other hand, has plenty of skills that could give Jones some real trouble. Fighting him is a high-risk, high-reward game for ‘Bones’. If he loses, any idea of him ascending into title contention would go down the drain.

With that considered, it feels like he’s making an error in not taking a tune-up bout.

#2. Jon Jones may be past his best

Jon Jones didn't appear to be at his best in his most recent wins, such as his victory over Thiago Santos

There’s definitely a chance that Jon Jones has simply left it too late to make a meaningful run in the UFC’s heavyweight division. There’s also a very fair argument to suggest that he’s past his best, period.

‘Bones’ isn’t an aging fighter by any means. When you consider how long he’s been around the top of the UFC, it’s remarkable that he’s still only 34-years-old.

Despite this, it’s arguable that his last few fights were the least impressive of his career. He made hard work of defeating three opponents who he was hugely favored to brush aside in Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes.

Against the latter two foes, there was an argument that Jones didn’t deserve the nod from the judges. Who knows what might’ve happened had Santos not severely injured his knee early on in their bout?

The truth is that Jones peaked in his wins over the likes of Alexander Gustafsson and Daniel Cormier, sometime between 2014 and 2017. Every fighter reaches a peak and then has to come down. It’s likely that ‘Bones’ is now on the downswing.

With that in mind, if he’d wanted heavyweight success, he probably should’ve moved up about five years ago.

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#1. Jon Jones’ chin might not hold up at heavyweight

Would Jon Jones' chin hold up at heavyweight?

Jon Jones was dominant at light heavyweight for years for many reasons. One of the more underrated aspects of his skillset was his toughness and durability.

‘Bones’ didn’t always get hit cleanly by his opponents, but when he did, he was able to absorb the shots without being stunned, let alone knocked down. Over the years, we saw Jones eat shots from the likes of Daniel Cormier, Dominick Reyes and Alexander Gustafsson and never suffer too much damage.

However, would Jones’ chin be able to hold up to the kind of power possessed by the UFC’s top heavyweights? It’s a fair question to ask. After all, there’s a huge difference in the power of a 205lbs fighter and a fighter tipping the scales at 265lbs.

Essentially, every heavyweight in the UFC seems to possess knockout power. The likes of Francis Ngannou, Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa are able to switch the lights off on their opponents with blows that don’t look to be more than glancing shots.

With zero experience of eating such strikes, whether Jon Jones’ chin could hold up against them is a massive question mark. He’d always be under threat, even in fights he might be winning.

It’s this question of durability that means that Jones’ move to heavyweight could well end in failure.