Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Jon Jones, has returned to training to get into shape so that he can join the Octagon soon.
In an unfortunate incident that shocked MMA fans across the world, Jones was stripped and suspended indefinitely by the UFC in April, after he crashed his SUV into a pregnant woman's car and fled the scene in New Mexico.
"Bones", 27, got out on a $2,500 bail days after his arrest, but the youngest champion in the history of UFC (at the age of 23) still has to explain his actions in the court.
However, Igor Araujo, who has been Jones' training partner at the Jackson-Winklejohn MMA academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, since many years, said that Jones is still the humble person that he always was, and he's an inspiration.
"On the first day Jones returned to the gym, they put him to clean the mat when the training session was over," Igor, also a UFC welterweight fighter, told MMAFighting.com.
"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 I look up to him inside the gym.
"He trains every day. He's always joking around and laughing. I spoke with him the other day and he's cool, being positive. The coach tells us what to do and he trains normally, every single day. He's in shape, too."
Jones was supposed to be gearing up for his UFC light heavyweight title defense against Anthony Johnson in May at the UFC 187. However, it all changed following the incident, and the champion is still on an indefinite suspension, stripped of his belt and his Reebok endorsement deal, and also temporarily removed from the rankings.
At one point, Jones' manager Malki Kawa even went on to say that he was unsure whether Jones will ever return to the sport.
"It could very well be the last time we've seen Jon Jones in the Octagon," Kawa had said in an interview to UFC journalist Ariel Helwani.
Daniel Cormier became the reigning and defending UFC Light Heavyweight champion following his submission win over Johnson in the UFC 187 main event.
A future bout between him and Jones, who has a 21-1-0 record, looks very unclear in the coming years. But whatever happens, for Igor, Jones has always been a "Champion", and he has only "lost the title to himself".
"I don't know what the justice is going to decide for his future, but he's a champion.Those in the UFC know that he's the champion, and he will get that belt back," Igor continued.
"The champion is the best. Rafael dos Anjos [UFC Lightweight Champion] won the title because he defeated everybody. (Chris) Weidman [UFC Middleweight Champion] 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," he added.
