John Jones provided insight into why he decided to embrace gig coaching against Nate Diaz on a Russian reality TV show.
In May, news broke that “Bones” had headed for Thailand to film Alfreality. This is a series similar to the ultimate fighter jet, where coaches Jones and Diaz are set to oppose each other. However, Diaz’s involvement in the show ended up crashing after the set’s brawl evolved into an all-out brawl and urged his team to leave the show. Jones eventually stayed and continued filming the show.
It’s not certain that Dias and his team were involved in the improvised brawl.
Despite not taking part in the show, “Stockton Samurai” chose to stay in Thailand and spent time sightseeing with the consensus goats. In a video on Diaz’s YouTube channel, Jones talked about his decision to embrace unique opportunities.
“I don’t see it as a rivalry. I’m honored to be here with Nate Diaz. I’ve always been a Nate Diaz fan. He’s an absolute legend in the sport. He and his brother are legendary.
“In the end, it feels like we all win, whether one of my guys wins or Nate’s guy wins or not.
Tom Aspinol is waiting as John Jones explores Thailand
John Jones’ misfortune in Thailand is well documented on his social media channels, but UFC fans are wondering if he will actually defend his heavyweight title against promotional interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinoll.
Dana White has expressed confidence that Jones vs Aspinel will happen in 2025, but his words offer little comfort to MMA enthusiasts.
Recently, one particularly frustrated fan launched a petition on Change.org, demanding that the UFC CEO strip the strap Jones. At the time of this writing, over 153,000 people have signed it.