Jon Jones helped corner Gable Steveson at UFC 331 on Saturday night, and he’s now spoken out to take the blame for the blue-chip prospects abrupt exit from the Octagon after his shock 12 second KO defeat to Sean Sharaf.

Steveson received a lot of criticism for not waiting until Sharaf was officially declared the winner and got his hand raised before deciding to walk out of the arena, but now Jones has said it wasn’t the fighter who made that call.

“I’ve seen some reports online 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. 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.“

Steveson’s swift knockout defeat was one of the biggest upsets in recent memory as the former Olympic wrestling gold medalist had been tipped as a potential future heavyweight champion, while his opponent Sharaf had been TKO’d in his only other two UFC fights.

Anything can happen once the Octagon door swings shut though, and despite the setback former two-division champion Jones still believes that Steveson will go on to be a big success in the UFC.

“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 said. “He will be back I’m sure of it.”