Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones started powerlifting 11 months ago. Back in beginning of October, his deadlift personal best was 525 lbs (238kgs), weighing 222 lbs (100 kgs). By December, his personal best was 600 lbs (272kgs).

Many fans wondered how is this was going to translate to MMA when Jon Jones made his UFC comeback? Some athletes such as Brendan Schaub had stated that Jones would come back as a much more improved version, while The UFC light heavyweight champion, Danielm Cormier told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that he thinks the heavy lifting is a bad idea for his arch rival.

For MMA fighters looking to get bigger, stronger, or improve their sports performance, powerlifting isn’t the be-all-end-all. Want to get stronger for sports? Focus on the squat, bench, and deadlift and throw in some assistance work to improve those lifts. The important thing is not to overdo the powerlifting.

After the UFC 197 main event bout between Jon Jones and Ovince Saint Preux, and his athlete’s lacklustre performance, Greg Jackson was heard on the corner audio discussing Jones’ performance.

(transcribed by MMA Junkie):

“He did all right coach,” Jones’ wrestling coach Israel Martinez said. Greg Jackson then brought up the heavy lifting that Jones has been doing for this fight as a reason for his somewhat lackluster performance.

“Powerlifting’s a problem,” Jackson said. “He gasses. I only want to do an I-told-you-so dance right now.”

Jon Jones deadlifting 585 lbs:

Daniel Cormier said on the MMA hour:

“He looked a lot bigger, but he also looked a lot slower. He looked like he tired a little faster,”

“I think this is Jon, this is the new Jon, this is Jon Jones with all the muscle,” he said. “This is Jon Jones that likes to lift weights. The Jon Jones who’s a big guy, cutting weight and can’t rehyrdate the old way under USADA rules. This is Jon Jones in the new UFC, the real world today. So when we fight in July he’s going to look the same.”

“He’s going to have questions, and he’s going to question himself, and you could see him processing things inside the cage. He’ll go home now and he’ll wonder why (he) looked like that,” he said. “Guess what bud, that’s who you are now! That’s how he’s going to look in July when I’m kicking his ass.”

“Maybe he feels that by getting stronger, it’s going to make him a better fighter. The reality is, when I saw him getting so bulky, as a competitor, I thought, ‘Wow, this isn’t bad for me.’ This isn’t bad for me as a competitor, because the Jon Jones that was kind of skinny and maybe wasn’t the bulkiest guy, it all worked, Helwani. It all worked. His body, the way his body was, it worked. It allowed him for range; it allowed him for optimal speed. It allowed him for quickness and agility.

“Looking at all the extra bulk, to me I was like, ‘Well, maybe this will slow him down. Maybe he won’t be the fastest guy. Maybe this guy is messing with what was given to him.’ In reality, what has been given to him is perfect.”