UFC Fight Pass Invitational 4: Craig Jones reveals why he was concerned stepping up to Felipe Pena before beating him

Craig Jones has revealed what his mindset was heading into his bout against Felipe Pena at UFC Fight Pass Invitational 4 last night.

Jones and Pena headlined the event which took place at the UFC Apex. UFC light heavyweight veterans Glover Teixeira and Anthony Smith also clashed in the co-main event, with the Brazilian winning via unanimous decision.

Jones and Pena faced off in the main event in a showing that demonstrated why both men are considered two of the best grapplers and BJJ practitioners in the world. Their clash saw each man have their moments but neither was able to assert their dominance before they eventually took each other to EBI overtime.

Eventually, Craig Jones had his hand raised after getting the victory via escape time. The Australian then sat down with the press to give his thoughts on the match and his performance.

According to Jones, he was apprehensive before the fight because of Felipe Pena's size. The Brazilian stepped into the octagon 15lbs heavier than his opponent, which had him a little worried. He explained:

"Last time I trained with him [Pena], he was 235lbs and then at the weigh-ins he showed up 225lbs on the dot. I was a little concerned at his size, because I was 210lbs...I found the way to win though."

Catch the press conference here (42:45):

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Craig Jones describes what he looks for in athletes

BJJ star Craig Jones recently had MMA fans in stitches after he revealed the characteristics he looks for whilst recruiting potential athletes for B Team Jiu Jitsu.

The Australian, who is also the BJJ coach for UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski, opted to name his search criteria on a recent episode of his El Segundo podcast.

According to Jones, the best fighters on the planet often have a mix of 'autism' and 'sterioids'. He said:

“If you have the right mix – I call it the goldilock sign – if you have the right mix of autism and steroids, you are 100% guaranteed to become a world champion. And that’s the thing, people are focusing on steroids but really as a world class coach, you really wanna attract people with autism because you can give anyone steroids. Despite our best efforts, we are yet to give anyone autism.”

Catch Jones' comments here: