Jon "Bones" Jones is reportedly training every day in his hometown of Alburquerque, New Mexico, while he awaits resolution on his hit-and-run case that not only got him suspended indefinitely from the UFC, but caused Dana White to strip him of his UFC light heavyweight title.
According to Jones' teammate Igor Araujo, Jones has been humbled by his rough 2015 outside the octagon, and has proven he's changed.
"On the first day Jones returned to the gym, they put him to clean the mat when the training session was over," Araujo said. "They always pick someone to clean the mat after the training, and he didn't complain he had to do it. He's a nice guy, and we look up to him inside the gym."
In Jones' absence, his rival Daniel Cormier stepped into his UFC 188 title match spot and defeated Anthony "Rumble" Johnson to win it. Since winning, Cormier has had to defend against detractors saying he's not the "real" champion because Jones never lost. In fact, Jones beat Cormier in January.
"The champion is the best. Rafael dos Anjos won the title because he defeated everybody. [Chris] Weidman did the same thing. Jon Jones lost the title to himself. I told him that already. 'The only man that can beat you is yourself.' We lose to ourselves all the time," Araujo said.
Jones' coach Mike Winkeljon admitted recently that there's a chance Jones never returns to the octagon. "I'm looking forward to Jon turning his life around and becoming a better person. Is he fighting again or not? I'm not sure. That's not important. What is important right now is that Jon takes care of himself and his family," Winkeljon said.
Araujo is significantly more optimistic.
"I think he will get out of this situation," Araujo said. "I don't know what the justice is going to decide for his future, but he's a champion."
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