Ultimate announces Jon Jones' first title defense at UFC 235

Jones is expected to fight again in March 2019. Photo: Reproduction / Facebook @ufc

Jon Jones won Alexander Gustafson by technical knockout and regained the light heavyweight belt at UFC 232, on December 29th. Just over a week after the clash, 'Bones' already knows his next rival. In an interview with the North American website TMZ Sports, the president of Ultimate, Dana White stated that Anthony Smith will face the champion at UFC 235, on March 2, in Las Vegas (USA).

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For the fight to be official, Jones needs to be cleared for fight by the Nevada Athletic Commission. Therefore, 'Bones' will have to apply for his athlete's license in January.

"At the end of this month, Jon Jones will submit a license application to the NSAC to compete at UFC 235 in Las Vegas on March 2. If the license is granted, Jones will defend his light heavyweight title against Anthony Smith in the five-round main event at T-Mobile Arena,” said White.

UFC 232 was scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, but Jones was caught taking a drug test by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). As a result, Jon was prevented from fighting in the state of Nevada and the event was moved to Los Angeles.

Last week, Smith had already stated that his manager was working to confirm the fight with Jones. Anthony debuted at light heavyweight and won three victories over Rashad evans, Mauritius Shogun e Volkan oezdemir. Thus, it quickly reached the top of the category.