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After 15 months of inactivity following a second drug suspension, the former UFC light heavyweight champion appears to have returned to the Octagon before the end of 2018 in a rematch of the title card that he previously held.
Jones (22-1, 1 NC) should face Alexander Gustafsson in a rematch of their thrilling 2013 fight at the UFC 232 main event in Las Vegas on December 29 according to Wednesday's report by Ariel Helwani of ESPN. The bout will be contested for the vacant 205-pound UFC title, which will be retired to current two-division champion Daniel Cormier as Jones and Gustafsson enter the cage.
Jones, 31, was recently suspended retroactively to USADA for a period of 15 months, which gave him the right to be reinstated later this month. UFC President, Dana White, had previously said Jones would not return to the Octagon in 2018 and "was not in a position to fight" to be considered a last-minute option for the title of UFC 230 in New York on November 3rd.
Jones's most recent suspension came as a result of his July 2017 TKO of Cormier, in their long-awaited rematch within UFC 217. Jones, who has given positive results for the metabolites of a banned steroid, was deprived of its light heavyweight title and the fight was deemed unquestionable. USADA had previously suspended Jones for one year after failing the two banned substances test before his next match against Cormier at the UFC 200 in 2016.
As a result of the reduction of his last suspension at USADA, Jones told ESPN that he was not interested in a trilogy bout against Cormier and that he would not becoming a heavyweight. His fight between UFC 232 and Gustafsson (18-4) is a rematch of their five-round classic at UFC 165 Toronto that Jones won following a unanimous decision to defend his title.
Gustafsson, 31, has retired from the fight scheduled for the month of August at UFC 227 due to an undisclosed injury. He has not fought since his fifth victory against Glover Teixeira in May 2017.
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