Jon Jones details how his father brought home a "sponge" that was used as a wrestling mat by him and his brothers

While Jon Jones' legacy is secure, he can further cement his place among the greatest mixed martial artists of all time at UFC 285 this weekend. The longtime UFC light heavyweight champion recently shared the story of how his career began wrestling his brothers on a piece of sponge used as a wrestling mat.

Speaking on episode four of the UFC 285 Embedded: Vlog Series, 'Bones' stated:

"We were wrestling for hours. My dad ended up getting us - he found a big old piece of sponge somewhere. It wasn't actually a wrestling mat, it was just a big piece of sponge that he put down in our basement, and every day after school, we would go down there and we would wrestle each other for hours."

Jon Jones added:

"Eventually, that sponge had so much bacteria on it. It was so disgusting. It had blood stained into it. We became real tough little homies down there, and then we'd get out and we'd compete against other kids and there was just something different about us three. We had a lot of a** kicking time put in on that d**n wrestling mat down there."

While 'Bones' has had one of the greatest mixed martial arts careers of all time, his younger brother Chandler Jones is one of the greatest pass rushers in NFL history. The youngest Jones brother has piled up 112 career sacks and ranks 26th all-time, despite playing just 11 seasons. Meanwhile, their older brother Arthur Jones also had a successful NFL career that lasted seven seasons.

Watch Jon Jones' comments below (starting at the 1:00 mark):

---

Jon Jones claims his legacy will not be destroyed by Ciryl Gane

Jon Jones has made it clear that he is fighting for his legacy at UFC 285, as he has a chance to strengthen his case for the greatest fighter of all time. 'Bones' recently shared that he will not allow Ciryl Gane to stand in his way:

"There's somewhere inside of him that he thinks there's a chance that he's going to take food off my family's table, that he's going to destroy my legacy, and that's something I take very personal and there's no mercy. Probably in France, he's super popular right now. They don't care whether they win or lose. They're just glad to be here. His coach is in suits, you guys haven't even showered today."

Jones noted that while he is focused on combat, his opponent is spending time playing video games. He will look to become just the eighth fighter in UFC history to win belts in two different weight classes.

Watch Jon Jones' comments on Ciryl Gane below (starting at the 3:00 mark):