While one would assume former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones still has a ways to go before he settles all of the legal matters related to his hit-and-run incident earlier this year, Chael Sonnen has a completely different timetable for “Bones'” Octagon return.
Sonnen spoke with News.com.au about noted that he expects Jones back “sooner than you think.”
“I think Jon Jones is gonna be back a lot sooner than you think,” said Sonnen. “He’s still got to get through a court date and anything could happen there — including jail time. If he gets jail time that just kicks the can down the road farther as far as his return.”
Sonnen, who knows first-hand how talented Jones is, as the two fought each other after coaching alongside one another during The Ultimate Fighter, claims it’s only a matter of time before Jones is back and wearing the gold.
“He’ll definitely be back and he will be champion again,” said Sonnen. “He’s a young guy that behaves as a young guy. Some people get success and they change, I don’t know that he’s changed. He was behaving like a knucklehead before he was champion and he behaves like a knucklehead now. He’s a young guy and I think a little bit needs to be considered there.”
Sonnen continued, “He’s a fist-fighter, he fights inside a steel cage I’m not totally sure all that’s expected of him, and why? He’s a very nice guy and that story never gets told, it seems like whenever he does something bad there’s always a camera around him but when he does something nice it just goes unnoticed. I know him pretty well and he’s a nice guy — he just behaves like a knucklehead and to me that sounds like a pretty regular person.”
