Jon Jones appears to be sparing no effort in his preparation for the much-awaited title showdown against Stipe Miocic. The reigning heavyweight champion is set to defend his title against Miocic in the headliner of UFC 309, scheduled for Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
'Bones' has long described his matchup with Miocic as the dream fight of his career and has even suggested that this could be his final walk to the octagon. With just over a month until UFC 309, Jones is leaving nothing to chance, ramping up his training by enlisting the help of Olympic gold medalist freestyle wrestler Gable Steveson and Brazilian jiu-jitsu phenom Gordon Ryan to sharpen his skills ahead of the showdown.
Jones recently took to X to share a short clip of himself enjoying time with Steveson and Ryan, along with his support team. He captioned:
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"I feel every bit of 37 hanging out with these two. It’s humbling, but I’m grateful."
Check out Jon Jones' post below:
The MMA community responded to Jones training with Steveson and Ryan for his comeback fight with a wave of reactions, many praising the former UFC light heavyweight champion for assembling a team of top-tier specialists.
MMA reporter Ariel Helwani wrote:
"'Bones' leaving no stone unturned. That’s quite the crew of experts."
One fan wrote:
"Iron sharpens iron."
Check out some more reactions below:
Earlier this week, 'Bones' was also spotted training alongside former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker.
When Gordon Ryan drew parallels between Jon Jones and Georges St-Pierre
Jon Jones training with Gordon Ryan is nothing new. 'Bones' sought the expertise of the BJJ specialist during his preparation for the scheduled showdown against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295 last November. However, the bout was ultimately scrapped when Jones had to withdraw due to an injury.
During an interview with Luke Thomas in October 2023, Ryan weighed in on his experience coaching 'Bones'. The multiple-time ADCC world champion lauded Jones' remarkable ability to quickly grasp new skills and compared him with UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre:
"Jon Jones is a lot like GSP. He's not the best wrestler, not the best striker in the world. But when it's time to put it all together, he does it better than anybody else in the world."
Check out Gordon Ryan's comments below (5:35):