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Should Jon Jones take a title fight or a tune-up next?

Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC / UFC / Getty

On Monday, UFC president Dana White laid out two clear paths for Jon Jones, his promotion's gifted, but troubled superstar:

1) A long-overdue rematch with Daniel Cormier for the UFC light heavyweight title.

2) A tune-up fight to help Jones bounce back from what will be a 15-month layoff by the time he's eligible to return from a recent USADA suspension in July.

While the first option seems like the obvious way to go, Jones' choice is complicated by the fact that he's only competed once since defeating Cormier in January 2015.

That lone outing was a five-round unanimous decision win over Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197. Jones' inability to definitively put away the fringe contender raised questions as to where "Bones" is mentally and physically in the wake of personal problems that led to him being stripped of the light heavyweight belt and robbed him of almost two years of his prime.

In his absence, Cormier has become more than the de facto No. 2 guy at 205 pounds. He's twice beaten Anthony "Rumble" Johnson and he won a thrilling five-round war against Alexander Gustafsson. Factor in his previous success as a heavyweight and there's an argument to be made that he's a top-three pound-for-pound fighter.

With Cormier peaking, it's not unfathomable that "DC" could take advantage of a rusty Jones and reverse the outcome from their first meeting. Is that a risk that Jones should take?

Regardless of the doubts that may swirl around Jones' current capabilities, his feud with Cormier remains one of the most compelling in all of MMA and the time is now for him to settle things with his rival. A tune-up fight might make practical sense, but it opens the door for further calamity or disinterest from the fans as they scoff at the two men fighting anyone else but each other.

Keep in mind that Cormier is already 38 and he's not going to wait around for Jones forever.

"I think Jon Jones, he needs to be Jon Jones the fighter, because there is nothing else," Cormier recently said on "The MMA Hour." "If you take away Jon Jones the fighter, what is there? Jon Jones the college dropout? Jon Jones the guy that actually ran over some chick in his vehicle? Who is he?

"He needs this to define him. You strip away everything else … there's layers to who I am. So he needs this more than me. I don't need him anymore."

Those comments may just be an attempt to goad Jones into a rematch, but even if they are that doesn't mean that Jones shouldn't bite. He's not getting any younger either and fighting anyone besides Cormier is essentially a waste of time, ring rust or no.

With White's offer, Jones once again controls his own destiny, and if he truly wants to be considered among the all-time greats then he needs to get right to the point and get his belt back as soon as possible.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)

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