How Many Title Defenses Does Jon Jones Have? All You Need to Know About UFC Star’s Championship Reigns

Take a look at UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ title fights.

By Sunil Krishnan

Updated on Aug 13, 2024 | 10:05 AM IST | 388.9K

Jon Jones

UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones is widely regarded as the Greatest Of All Time in MMA. Throughout his career, he has defended his title 13 times against tough contenders in the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions.

His unbelievable win streak against high-caliber fighters made him one of the best champions in the UFC. However, Jon Jones was met with several discrepancies throughout his career that had him strip his championship title multiple times.

In 2011, 23-year-old Jon Jones defeated Mauricio Rua at UFC 128, making him the youngest champion in the sport. This is when Bones’ first title reign began. However, he quickly put himself on the receiving end of Dana White’s rage after his coach, Greg Jackson, declined a fight against Chael Sonnen due to Dan Henderson’s withdrawal.

He then fought a tough fight against Rampage Jackson at UFC 135, defeating him via fourth-round submission. For his next few fights, Jon Jones had an unbelievable win streak against Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort, and also Chael Sonnen.

Arguably his greatest win was against Daniel Cormier after a longstanding bad-blooded rivalry. Jones’ first title reign came to an end after he was involved in a hit-and-run case. After hitting the pregnant woman and fleeing the scene, Bones was stripped of his title in 2015.

Six months after being stripped and suspended, Jon Jones fought Ovince Saint-Preux at UFC 197. Following this fight, Bones made history as he became the first fighter in the organization to be stripped of his belt twice.

According to the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Jon Jones tested positive for clomiphene and letrozole, substances that are banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency. He was once again suspended by the Nevada Athletic State Commission.

Jon Jones was given a chance to recapture his heavyweight belt against Daniel Cormier at UFC 214. After succeeding in doing so, another controversy arose. Once again, Bones tested positive for turinabol metabolite, an anabolic steroid that was banned in the sport.

The biggest win of his career was quickly turned into a no-contest, prompting the UFC to strip his title for the third time. Due to another violation, Bones was suspended for 15 months.

Jones once again became the light heavyweight champion after defeating Alexander Gustaffson for the second time following his suspension. No controversy arose this time as Bones took on Thiago Santos and Anthony Smith.

Jon Jones faced Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 and won via unanimous decision. This fight was deemed a robbery, as fans believed his opponent to have won the fight. Following this fight, Bones vacated his title in 2020, expressing his desire to move to heavyweight.

UFC 285 witnessed history as Jon Jones defeated Ciryl Gane to become the heavyweight champion in his long-awaited return. This was a perfect victory for Bones, as he earned a submission victory in the very first round.

The Ciryl Gane fight was Jon Jones’ latest fight. Bones is expected to defend his title against Stipe Miocic in November. Following this fight, Dana White claimed that the winner of this bout would fight interim champion Tom Aspinall.

Opponent	Event	Result
Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson	UFC 135	Round 4 Submission
Lyoto Machida	UFC 140	Round 2 Submission
Rashad Evans	UFC 145	Unanimous Decision Victory
Vitor Belfort	UFC 152	Round 4 Submission
Chael Sonnen	UFC 159	Round 1 TKO
Alexander Gustafsson	UFC 165	Unanimous Decision Victory
Glover Texeira	UFC 172	Unanimous Decision Victory
Daniel Cormier	UFC 182	Unanimous Decision Victory
Ovince Saint Preux	UFC 197	Unanimous Decision Victory
Alexander Gustafsson	UFC 232	Round 3 KO
Anthony Smith	UFC 235	Unanimous Decision Victory
Thiago Santos	UFC 239	Split Decision Victory
Dominick Reyes	UFC 247	Unanimous Decision Victory