When Jon Jones issued "death" warning to Israel Adesanya in potential fight before they buried the hatchet

Jon Jones once issued a chilling threat concerning a potential showdown against Israel Adesanya. It came at a time when the rivalry between 'Bones' and 'The Last Stylebender' was marked by both fighters relentlessly trading barbs.

A veteran kickboxer, Adesanya made his UFC promotional debut in February 2018 and swiftly became one of the biggest stars in the sport of MMA and broader combat sports realms. The Nigeria-born Kiwi captured the interim UFC middleweight title in April 2019 and the undisputed UFC middleweight title in October 2019. 'Izzy' reigned as the division's kingpin for a few years.

On the other hand, Jon Jones has competed in the UFC for far longer. 'Bones' made his UFC debut in August 2008 and wreaked havoc at light heavyweight. The American captured the undisputed light heavyweight title in March 2011. He ruled the division with an iron fist until his final 205-pound bout in February 2020. Following that, he announced his move up to heavyweight.

In the 2018-2019 timeframe, Adesanya's meteoric rise led to some fans speculating about how a fight would play out between him and light heavyweight icon Jones. Fast-forward to 2020, Adesanya and Jones assertively spoke about possibly clashing inside the octagon.

Discussions escalated to disputes. Their feud featured them exchanging extremely personal remarks. Jones notably asked whether Adesanya's father believed his son could beat him. 'Izzy' implied that Jones' mother would be disappointed in who the American fighter had become.

Speaking of their feud, in March 2021, Israel Adesanya suffered his first defeat in professional MMA competition. He was the UFC middleweight champion at the time and moved up in weight to face then-UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz.

Adesanya was thoroughly out-grappled in the fight, was beaten via unanimous decision, and failed to win light heavyweight gold.

In December 2021, Jones alluded to the elements at play and jibed at Adesanya's purported lack of grappling skills. Responding to a fan's tweet about how their hypothetical light heavyweight matchup would've played out, 'Bones' eerily implied he'd have ground-and-pounded 'Izzy' to death:

"It's been a really long time since I fought someone was such a low level of grappling. He would've got ground and pounded to death."

Check out a screenshot of Jon Jones' tweet below:

Screenshot of tweet

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Aftermath of the Jon Jones vs. Israel Adesanya feud

On Logan Paul's Impaulsive podcast in 2023, Israel Adesanya suggested he'd long been Jon Jones' fan and felt that Jones was a fan of his. Adesanya recounted that their rivalry commenced around the time of his spectacular TKO victory against Paulo Costa in September 2020, when Jones expressed interest in fighting him.

Regardless, Adesanya and Jones met in 2023 and famously squashed their beef, with both emphasizing life's too short to hold grudges.

Watch Israel Adesanya discuss the topic below (46:11):

Israel Adesanya is eyeing a triumphant comeback to the octagon, potentially in 2025. He's currently on a two-fight losing streak. On the other hand, heavyweight champion Jon Jones is booked to defend his heavyweight belt against the legendary Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 (Nov. 16, 2024).