MMA News Roundup: Jon Jones Says He’s an “Easy Target” After Arrest News, Islam Makhachev Next for Dustin Poirier? Justin Gaethje Refuses Title Shot After UFC 300

Brace yourself for yet another thrilling edition of the daily roundup, where we bring you up to speed on the most exhilarating moments from the world of MMA in the last 24 hours. We will start today with Jon Jones, who clarified the recent reports of his arrest. Then we will shift our focus to Dustin Poirier, who’s gunning for Islam Makhachev‘s lightweight strap. Finally, we will sum up the daily news compilation with Justin Gaethje hesitating to fight for the title if he wins at UFC 300. Now, let’s plunge into these noteworthy moments!

Jon Jones claims the report of his arrest is a hoax

After Jon Jones made waves in the news for an alleged criminal act against a couple of Drug Free Sport International officials, new reports have popped up claiming that the UFC heavyweight champion has been arrested. Many notable media platforms seem to echo the same news. However, Jones claims those reports to be false. The 36-year-old recently shared a tweet to clarify the things the media have been speculating about him because he had similar issues in the past.

“I woke up to false reports that I had been arrested . I have not been arrested. In fact, I am currently in Texas with my daughters at a volleyball tournament,” wrote Jon Jones. “I must admit, it’s disappointing to have to clarify these things again , but I understand that I may be an easy target given some of my past issues. it’s important to set the record straight and make sure the truth is told.”

Furthermore, the heavyweight champion has also assured the fans that he is willing to go to lengths that the accusations laid against him are void. ” I want to assure you that I will vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations. The truth is, the incident simply did not occur,” ‘Bones’ added. However, nothing can be assumed until the report of the investigation comes out.

Dustin Poirier wants Islam Makhachev next

After emerging victorious in impressive fashion in his last fight against Benoit Saint-Denis, where he came in as an underdog, Dustin Poirier is ready to taste gold. The undisputed lightweight champion has eluded him his whole UFC run and now he finally wants to end that chapter by facing Islam Makhachev, who also mentioned wanting to fight Poirier in June after he returns to training following Ramadan.

“Islam Makhachev is next. It’s time to reach the pinnacle,” wrote Dustin Poirier in a post he shared on his Instagram account. With UFC 300 approaching soon, Dana White seems to be focusing his mind on that historic pay-per-view event. As such, an announcement is still pending for the Poirier vs Makhachev fight to be made official. Meanwhile, another lightweight star, who has his sights on the championship and is also fighting at UFC 300, has seemingly declined to fight for the title following his fight this weekend.

Justin Gaethje is not willing to fight for the title after UFC 300

‘The Highlight’ Justin Gaethje will welcome Max Holloway back into the lightweight division at UFC 300. In addition to that, the 35-year-old will also put his BMF title on the line, which will be the first time for that championship to be put up for grabs. Gaethje appeared in an interview with ‘MMA Junkie‘ and mentioned that a return in June would not be a favorable option for him. Instead, he wants to fight for the title towards the end of the year.

“Ideally, they’re calling this Oliveira-Tsarukyan fight a title eliminator, so the winner of that fight fights (Makhachev) in June, then I fight the winner of that in preferably Madison Square Garden in November,” ‘The Highlight’ stated. He believes November will be the ideal return date because he wants to fully recover from his fight against Max Holloway this weekend. “That sounds like a perfect timeline for me. I’ll definitely have my time to rest, recovery and retrain myself to get ready for that fight,” Justin Gaethje added.

It seems like the BMF champion does not want to be under-prepared for the Islam Makhachev fight since the Dagestan native has lost only once in his career. However, there is a chance that he may not face Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s protégé and fight either Arman Tsarukyan or Charles Oliveira. We will have to wait and see how things unfold in the months to months to come.

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