Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight
champion Jon Jones is
in good spirits despite suffering a serious injury requiring months
of recovery.
Jones (27-1, 1 NC) is determined to make a return to the Octagon as
soon as he can, after being forced out of his
UFC 295 title fight with Stipe
Miocic (20-4) due to a shoulder injury. About two and a half
weeks before the highly anticipated heavyweight title attraction,
UFC CEO Dana White
announced that Jones had suffered a pectoral tear during a
grappling session that would require surgery.
With Jones on the shelf for a prolonged period, the promotion
elected to create an interim heavyweight strap. Vying for the newly
created belt will be top contenders Tom
Aspinall and Sergei
Pavlovich, who will be stepping up on extremely short notice in
the co-main event of UFC 295. Jones (27-1) took to social media on
Thursday to address his withdrawal, and apologize to his opponent
as well as the fans.
“Thank you to everybody who’s checked in with me to see how I was
feeling,” Jones said. “Obviously, a very sad situation…very upset.
But I’ve been through a lot of things in life, and injuries [are] a
part of being an athlete. I want to thank the UFC for getting me
into one of the best doctors in the country, Dr. [Neal ElAttrache].
Thank you to Dr. ElAttrache and his staff members over here in
California for seeing me so quick.”
Jones continued, “I wanted to say thank you to Stipe
Miocic for all the work that he’s put in. Also, sorry to Stipe
and his team. Like I said, this comes with the territory. [I’d like
to] thank all my coaches and training partners, everyone who has
helped me get this far – can’t even say get to the fight. But the
goal is to get surgery tomorrow and get back to work as soon as
possible. I guess it’ll be Stipe and I at a later date, and that’s
my plan.”
As per the statement issued by White, Jones could possibly be out
for eight months following surgery scheduled for Friday. Despite
the uphill battle ahead, “Bones” seems optimistic about his
recovery process.
“So it’ll be surgery and physical therapy for me for the next
several months. But I’m committed. I’m committed, and my head is
high. Thank you to everyone who has prayed for me, and I love you
all. Again, sincere apologies to the fans. I know some of you guys,
it was a huge commitment to get out to Madison Square Garden.
Hopefully, these other heavyweights, Aspinall and Sergei put on a
great show for you guys. I may even show up to the event to watch.
But I love you all, and your boy Jon Jones is
doing OK. And I’ll be OK. Take care,” the champ concluded.