Although Jon Jones is widely regarded as the greatest fighter of all time, he has continuously divided the fanbase with his antics outside of the cage.
Despite currently reigning over the UFC heavyweight division, Jon Jones is causing anger amongst the fanbase as he continues to delay a potential title unification fight against Tom Aspinall.
The prospect of that potential fight seemingly dwindles by the day, especially now that Jones has become co-owner of Dirty Boxing Championship, taking his attention elsewhere.
Although he is still widely regarded as the greatest fighter of all time, the fanbase is split in their opinions of ‘Bones’ considering his history of antics outside of fighting.
Jon Jones changed UFC champion’s mindset after conversation in club
Despite the fact that Jones has gone on to maintain his position as the greatest of all time, Aljamain Sterling was shocked when he spent time with ‘Bones’, which resulted in him changing his mindset towards fighting.
“I went to school with him in my freshman year, his sophomore year, before he became a UFC fighter. We partied a lot,” Sterling explained in a video on his YouTube channel.
“He drops out. I transfer and see all these pictures of him doing cool s—… I thought, ‘I want to do this.’ I meet him, and I’m thinking, I gotta live the life of a monk, I gotta be super disciplined.
“I’m thinking, ‘This is what Jon Jones is doing. This is why he’s killing these guys cause he’s just here with the mental and the sacrifices and everything, the dedication.’
“And then I see him at the bar, maybe two or three fights into the UFC. He’s probably got a fight the week later, and he’s getting smashed, drinking, having a good time, and he’s offering me a drink,” Sterling continued.
Throughout Sterling’s UFC career, he has always been a perfect example of a prime athlete, always staying in shape and consistently living the life of an athlete.
“I’m like, ‘Nah, I got a fight in five weeks. Wait, you’re fighting tomorrow, bro… I’m confused, what the hell is happening right now?’
“And this changed my mindset. I gave up all the things I enjoyed in life that made training more enjoyable. But I was like, ‘The sacrifice, the sacrifice.’ But then I realised it came down to the mental,” Sterling revealed.
Sterling went on to win the UFC title after changing his mindset
Following the conversation with Jones, ‘Funkmaster’ went on to change his mindset and took a different approach to fighting.
Of course, that led to him becoming the UFC bantamweight champion in 2021, subsequently going on to defend the title three times.
Since then, Sterling has moved up to the featherweight division, where he is looking to join a select group of fighters by winning a title in two separate weight classes.
