Jon “Bones” Jones has dominated his competition for decades, asserting himself at the throne of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and among a thin list of the greatest fighters ever.

Following his most recent bout at UFC 309, in which he knocked out former heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic with a spinning back in the third round, Jones has now successfully defended his belt 12 times, bringing his title fight record to a perfect 15-0.

With an overall 28-1 record (along with 1 no-contest) in UFC fights, Jones’s only loss came against Matt Hamill in 2009. Jones was dominating Hamill in the first round before Hamill used an illegal elbow, known as the 12-6 elbow, which resulted in a disqualification for Jones. 

Nearly 15 years later, the UFC made the 12-6 elbow legal, causing many Jones fans and supporters to view his record as an unblemished 29-0 despite the UFC refusing to change its ruling on the fight.

Despite the controversy, Jones has gone 19-0 since the loss, including 11 wins by submission or knockout and only one fight judged a split decision.

Unlike many UFC and boxing legends who take years of amateur and professional fighting to reach their peaks, Jones hit the apex of fighting in less than 3 years. Beginning his UFC career in April 2008, Jones became, and still is, the youngest to ever win a UFC title fight with his KO in the third round versus Mauricio “Shogun” Rua on March 19, 2011, at UFC 128 to claim the Light Heavyweight belt.

Over the next four years, Jones would continue to dominate the Light Heavyweight division by going 7-0 in title defenses. Among these fights were unanimous victories against top-ranked fighters Rashad Evans, Alexander Gustafsson, Glover Teixeira, and Daniel Cormier.

However, four months after Jones’s victory against Cormier, disaster struck.

Jones was involved in a hit-and-run car wreck which saw him crash into a pregnant woman before fleeing the scene. As a result, Jones was charged with 18 months of supervised probation by the state of New Mexico and a six-month ban from the UFC, which included stripping Jones of his Light Heavyweight title.

In an interview with MMAFighting.com, Jones described the incident and why he fled the scene. “This is gonna be terrible; this is gonna be messy. I gotta go. I was afraid, man. I freaked out. I was afraid to talk to the police at the time. So, I just thought I had to get away from this.”

In response to the accident, UFC president Dana White revealed how difficult it was to have to take Jones’s title away. “For us to have to go in and strip him of his title and suspend him, you know, it’s not fun.”

Jones returned to the octagon in 2016 to reclaim his belt in a title fight against Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197, which he won by a unanimous decision. This victory over the interim champ allowed Jones to reclaim his throne over the UFC.

Nearly seven months into his second title reign, Jones was once again the source of controversy when he tested positive for clomiphene and letrozole, both of which were performance-enhancing drugs banned by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. Jones was once again stripped of his title and banned from fighting in the UFC for another year.

However, while Jones was absent, a rivalry began to brew between himself and Daniel Cormier. Since Jones’s ban, Cormier had taken over the UFC Light Heavyweight division, with title fight wins over Anderson Silva, Alexander Gustafson, and Anthony Jonson twice. Cormier was seeking revenge for his loss against Jones in 2015 and had been attacking him on his character and controversies ever since.

When Jones’s ban was complete in 2017, Dana White and the UFC organized one of the most popular title fights of all time, Jones vs Cormier 2 at UFC 214. After 15 months away from the octagon, Jones returned to fight in the main event at the Honda Center in California. 

After a strong start to the battle by Cormier, Jones’s height, length, and grappling proved to be too much. A high kick to Cormier’s head sent him stumbling down, resulting in a KO victory for Jones.

It seemed as if all the controversies were over for Jones, and his dominance inside the octagon proved more valuable than his antics outside the sport until drug tests came back positive for Turinabol, a metabolic steroid banned by the UFC. 

Jones’ victory was then reversed to a no-contest, and he was stripped of his title for a record third time. He was also banned from the UFC once again, this time for 15 months.

Upon his return, Jones proved his skills inside the octagon were unmatched, reclaiming the Light Heavyweight belt against Alexander Gustaffson before defending it three more times against Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, and Dominic Reyes.

Following his win against Reyes, Jones took a three-year hiatus from fighting, a move many thought would signal the end of his dominant career. However, Jones was not done yet, as he would return in 2023 with a new goal in mind: the Heavyweight title.

For the first time in 5 years, Jon Jones would be the challenger as he took on defending champ Ciryl Gane in Las Vegas at UFC 285.

Although Jones had to put on over 30 pounds for the Heavyweight fight, his natural athleticism never faltered. He dominated Gane with first-round submission and once again proved too commanding in the octagon.

Following the victory, Jones had now asserted himself among a list of 9 UFC legends who have received the title of “double champion.”

Dana White has said that big things are coming for the UFC in 2025, with many fans hoping this includes a Heavyweight battle between the aging legend Jon Jones and up-and-comer Tom Aspinall. For all the doubters who still believe Jon Jones has more to prove before his career is over, this fight could be the one that cements him as the greatest of all time.

At 37 years old, it is unclear how much longer Jones will have as a champion in the octagon, but his touted and impressive career enlists him as the “baddest man on the earth.”

Featured Image Photo Credit: The Independent