Craig Jones made a surprising announcement during his recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show…
Revealing that he intends to return to gi competition in the near future!
Known for his many accomplishments in no-gi grappling, Jones hasn’t competed in the gi for several years – and he has even publicly stated in the past that gi grappling is “long dead”.
When asked about his future plans, Jones dropped the bombshell:
I’m honestly thinking about throwing the gi back on.
Thinking about jumping back in.
Helwani suggested MMA legend Demetrious Johnson as a possible contender, to which Jones responded:
That would be a fun one.
He should have the advantage there, he’s a seasoned gi grappler of late.And I like the weight disadvantage he has.
Jones pointed out a key factor that could complicate his return, however:
It’s tough you know?
First and foremost I couldn’t do IBJJF because they would drug test me and then gone is that accomplishment.If I were to do another show, here’s the problem now, I promote my own show.
We did CJI so part of me is like: “Do I do it on another show? Support another streaming platform that really didn’t give us much support, or do I wait and do it on my own promoted events?”
And really I lean towards the latter.
Given that Jones headlined the inaugural Craig Jones Invitational (CJI) in a superfight against Gabi Garcia, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him return for another high-profile matchup in the second edition of CJI.
Sloth Jiu-Jitsu: you can be slow and unathletic and still kick butt in Jiu-Jitsu.
