Jon Jones went from winning the UFC heavyweight title to losing a push-up competition to legless mixed martial artist Zion Clark in the space of just a few minutes on Sunday. Jones underlined his status as the greatest MMA fighter in history by slicing through Ciryl Gane like a hot knife through butter at UFC 285 in Las Vegas.
Jones had plenty of energy left afterwards to take on legless fighter Zion Clark in a push-up competition backstage. Clark was born with caudal regression syndrome, a serious disorder which impairs the development of the lower spine.
The controversial American had not fought for more than three years since vacating his title at light-heavyweight to bulk up and have a crack at the top division. But there were no signs of rust as he choked out the Frenchman via a clinical first-round submission in just three minutes.
‘Man god bless you, keep doing what you’re doing. Z, let’s go baby! I know you wanna hit that push-up competition. I know you wanna hit it. I got some extra in me too.’ The pair then started doing push-ups together, with Jones stopping at 40 reps.
Despite this, he has been able to participate and compete in numerous sports and has even turned his attention to establishing an MMA career. The UFC champion was filmed greeting Clark and telling him: ‘I love what you’re doing, man! You’re killing it. I see you, it’s a big occasion.
‘You look like you’re slowing down, bro! Let’s go! Well, you can’t win all of them,’ Clark joked. Jones then shook hands with Clark before heading to the changerooms to get ready for his press conference.
When the judges’ decision was revealed, a delighted Clark backflipped his way back to his corner, sending the onlooking crowd wild. The former college wrestler received plaudits from all over the world for his efforts, including UFC icon Conor McGregor.
In December, Clark made headlines for winning his first MMA bout against an able-bodied opponent at the Gladiator Challenge in San Diego. The fight lasted the entire three rounds before Clark was then named the winner by unanimous decision.
Jones’ victory over Gane means he is now the undisputed heavyweight champion and becomes just the eighth athlete to conquer two separate UFC divisions. The win also extended Jones’ record unbeaten streak to 19 in a row, and he improved to 27-1 with one no-contest. ‘(Jones is) a total freak of nature,’ said UFC boss Dana White, ‘and he’s the best ever.’
