Jon Jones Stands By Gable Steveson After UFC 331 Knockout Loss
Jon Jones is taking the heat for how Gable Steveson left the cage at UFC 331.
The former two-division champion said it was his call to pull Steveson out of the Octagon after a 12-second knockout loss to Sean Sharaf on Saturday in Los Angeles.
“I’ve seen some reports on line and I really wanted to clear the air,” Jones wrote on X. “It was my decision to take Gable straight to the back after the fight.”
Sharaf landed a left hook that dropped Steveson at 0:12 of the first round at Crypto.com Arena. Referee Frank Trigg waved it off before the Olympic wrestler could recover.
Steveson fell to 4-1. Sharaf improved to 5-2 and earned his first UFC win.
Steveson was gone before Bruce Buffer announced the result. The crowd in Los Angeles had already been on him all week, and the early exit drew more criticism.
Jones said the decision was about checking on his friend, not ducking the moment.
“Honestly it was the first time in this situation for me and my instant reaction was to get my friend to the back to make sure he was ok.”
Jones has been more than a ringside guest. He trained with Steveson heading into the Olympic gold medalist’s UFC run and walked him to the cage on Saturday.
That relationship is now part of the story after the fastest finish of Steveson’s career.
Jones did not walk back his belief in the 26-year-old heavyweight.
“Gable’s work ethic and will to win is there and I stand by him and believe he will go on to be one of the best heavyweights in the ufc,” Jones wrote. “He will be back I’m sure of it.”
Steveson arrived in the UFC as a 4-0 prospect with four first-round finishes. His last win was a first-round knockout of Elisha Ellison at UFC 329 in July.
Sharaf was a massive underdog. He had lost his first two UFC fights and needed one clean shot to change the night.
The finish is listed among the fastest heavyweight knockouts in UFC history. Steveson never got close to a takedown.
Jones’s post answers one specific complaint. Some reports framed the cage exit as Steveson walking off on his own before the official result.
Jones said that was not the case. He made the call in the moment after watching his fighter get knocked out for the first time as a professional.
The statement does not change the result. It does put Jones between Steveson and the public reaction.
Steveson still has the wrestling résumé that made him a prospect. He also has a first MMA loss that lasted 12 seconds and a mentor publicly tying his name to the walkout.
Jones is betting the work ethic holds. Steveson has not announced a next date.
The heavyweight division will see whether that belief holds once the Olympic wrestler is cleared to fight again.