Israel Adesanya explains why Jon Jones hasn’t fought at heavyweight yet: “He’s scared”

UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya explained why Jon Jones hasn’t fought at heavyweight, suggesting the MMA legend is “scared.”

Adesanya and Jones do not like each other at all and a superfight between the two appears to be looming. UFC president Dana White recently said that Adesanya has numerous options for his next fight. One option is staying at middleweight to defend his belt against the winner of UFC 254’s Robert Whittaker vs. Jared Cannonier. Another option is moving up to 205lbs to fight either new champion Jan Blachowicz or Jones.

Adesanya has spoken openly about moving up in weight, to both light heavyweight and heavyweight, something that Jones has also spoken about. Both men are considering a weight class change to face new challenges inside the Octagon, but at this point, it’s all just talk as nothing has been inked. Speaking to MMAFighting.com’s Damon Martin, Adesanya said the real reason Jones hasn’t moved up yet is that he’s “scared”

Every time I fight, no one ever asks him anything, but he always brings me up. You know why? Cause he’s scared. He knows that I know he’s scared,” Adesanya said.

“This is the thing. He keeps saying, ‘Is he really ready to move up in weight?’ Is he really ready to move up in weight? It’s been damn near since 2013 he’s been teasing, ‘I’m going to move up to heavyweight.’ It’s 2020. Is he ever going to be ready to move up in weight? Yet they’re trying to make me move up in weight early so that way they can get me.”

Adesanya does have a point here that Jones has been teasing a move up in weight for a few years now but with no end result thus far. However, with Jones vacating the UFC light heavyweight title over the summer, and posting videos of him bulking up in weight, he appears to be more serious about a move up to heavyweight more than ever before.

Do you agree with Israel Adesanya that Jon Jones is “scared” of fighting at heavyweight?