Appearing to finally be ready to return to the octagon, Jon Jones attempted to get fans excited by posting a video of his impressive squat numbers. The UFC heavyweight champion displayed his current injury progression by showing proof of his 525-pound squat on July 4.
Jones did not complete a full-depth squat but noted that he was feeling his "strength come back" just a day after claiming he would be fighting Stipe Miocic in November. In his Instagram post, the 36-year-old continued to hint at his next title defense, saying he has "18 weeks to improve."
Jones' post was impressive to some but one of his former training partners called the video out as a fake. Brazilian jiu-jitsu star Gordon Ryan called Jones' video "AI generated," believing the heavyweight's lower body was too small to be able to squat the amount.
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Ryan commented:
"This is AI generated. Everyone here knows those little legs ain't moving that heavy a** weight."
Jones' leg has been a point of conversation among fans for several years. Though Jones has been credited for having one of the best physiques in MMA throughout most of his career, fans taunted 'Bones' during his heavyweight debut in 2023 for adding no muscle to his legs despite increasing in body weight.
Jon Jones continues to promote a fight in November
In his post showing off his recent back squat results, Jon Jones continued to push the narrative that he will be returning in November against Stipe Miocic.
The two-division champion originally made the claim on July 3 on Instagram but the fight has not been officially announced by the UFC.
Jones was scheduled to face Miocic at UFC 295 in November 2023 but withdrew from the matchup with a torn pectoral muscle. Should his claims be true, the fight would be rescheduled almost exactly one year after the original booking.