Jon Jones: Rematch with Gustafsson, not Cormier, most important to 'get rid of all doubt'

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is days away from his first formal UFC public appearance since the UFC reinstated him after initially stripping “Bones” of the title and suspending him this past year.

Jones (21-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) has been on the sidelines since a unanimous-decision victory over now-champ Daniel Cormier (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) at UFC 182 in January 2015. Jones was subsequently charged in a hit-and-run accident that put his career on the sidelines.

“Bones” is back now, and in UFC 197’s pay-per-view headliner on April 23 in Las Vegas, he looks to reclaim the belt from Cormier, who won the vacant title during Jones’ suspension.

But before any of that happens, Jones and Cormier will come face-to-face prior to Friday’s UFC 196 weigh-ins. Although Jones downplayed his animosity with “DC” on social media, he said he’s not sure what it will be like when he’s in the same room with his rival for the first time in 14 months (via Twitter):

“Right now there isn’t any (animosity), but I’m sure when I see him, things will ramp up a bit,” Jones recently told MMAjunkie. “I haven’t really thought about it at all. I’ve been in the UFC for so many years now, so it can’t be anything too different than what I’ve experienced. I’m excited to just take it as it comes.”

The Cormier rematch marks Jones’ opportunity to regain the belt he never officially lost in the octagon. A second showdown with Cormier is a big fight, Jones said, but it’s not the one he wants most. Jones still has vivid memories of his razor-thin 2013 win over Alexander Gustafsson and said that rematch is more crucial than one with Cormier.

“I have those feelings a little more with Gustafsson than I do with Daniel,” Jones said. “I already beat (Cormier) by unanimous decision, so I don’t really have this feeling where I have to put him away or get rid of him once and for all. I just need to fight him because he has the belt right now. That’s really what this is all about for me. I feel that way more about Gustafsson. I really need to fight him again just to get rid of all doubt.”

Nevertheless, Cormier is the fight on deck for Jones, and the No. 1 fighter in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA pound-for-pound rankings said he’s ready to upstage his previous performance in what will be the first rematch of his career.

“My goal is to win in a more dominating fashion than last time,” Jones said. “A finish would be an absolute cherry on top, but I just want to perform better than I did the first time.”

Check out the full video above.

And for more on UFC 197, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.