Jonathan Dwight Jones is an American professional mixed martial artist currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion. A professional competitor since 2008, he is a former two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, holding the title from March 2011 to April 2015 and from December 2018 to August 2020. Jones also held the interim UFC Light Heavyweight Championship in 2016. As of March 7, 2023, he is #1 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings.
Jones became the youngest champion in UFC history with his title victory over Maurício Rua at age 23. He holds many UFC records in the light heavyweight division, including the most title defenses, most wins, and longest win streak. During much of his championship reign, Jones has been widely considered to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Never stopped nor outscored during his career, Jones's only professional loss is a controversial disqualification against Matt Hamill; a result that Hamill and UFC President Dana White dispute.
Between 2015 and 2017, Jones was involved in several controversies and lost his title three times as a result of disciplinary action. He was first stripped of his title and removed from the official rankings by the UFC in 2015 after he was arrested on felony hit-and-run charges. His subsequent returns to the UFC in 2016 and 2017 saw him emerge victorious in title bouts against Ovince Saint Preux and Daniel Cormier, but were both cut short by Jones testing positive for banned substances and receiving further suspensions, with the latter reversed to a 'no contest'. After his 2017 suspension was lifted, Jones reclaimed the championship in 2018 by defeating Alexander Gustafsson. He voluntarily vacated the title in 2020 amid a pay dispute with White and cited intent to move up to heavyweight. In 2023, after over three years off, Jones returned and won the UFC Heavyweight Championship after defeating Ciryl Gane. Jones is widely regarded as one of the greatest mixed martial artists in history - an opinion that is also seconded by UFC President Dana White.
