Heading into 2015, Jon Jones was the king of the UFC, running rampant through the light heavyweight division. Then a failed drug test was promptly followed by a hit-and-run incident that saw him stripped of his title and suspended indefinitely. Now, a year to the day of his dismissal from the UFC, Jones is set to make his return against Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197. We sat down with the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter to discuss whether or not Daniel Cormier is afraid to fight him, plus why his newfound sobriety should have every other fighter put on notice.

After everything that has happened in the past year, is there any added pressure for you to prove that you haven’t lost a step going into this fight at UFC 197?

No, I don’t feel any added pressure. I never stopped training and before I had this down time, I was actually starting to feel a little complacent, a little burnt out. To have a year off, I really got to have time to sit back, reevaluate my career and how important it is to me, and rebuild myself both outside of the octagon and inside of the octagon. It feels good to be fighting again. It’s such a blessing to be out performing in front of people and having a job that doesn’t feel like a job because I love it so much. I’m super grateful and I feel as if the fans are going to see a much improved version of me.

You mentioned that you never stopped training throughout everything else that was going on—can we expect some new tricks out of you?

I spent a lot of time in the weight room, which is something I had never done in the past. I used to try to cram in this 10-week strength and conditioning program to get in shape [before a fight], but now I’ve been doing strength and conditioning for about eight months now. I feel a lot stronger and in better shape than I’ve ever been. I also hired a new nutritionist and my diet is a lot cleaner. And I also hired a jiu jitsu coach, so my ability to submit opponents I think is at an all time high right now. Don’t be surprised if I end up choking this guy out.

"...a guy like Cormier, just being hurt is one more thing chipping away at his already pretty weak confidence. So he took the [easy] way out."

Does that year off now feel like a blessing in disguise, career wise?

Absolutely. Definitely. I really got to rest my body and have a year without the pressure of performing in front of millions. I just got to focus on family and myself for a while, and I’m so much better because of it.

You’ve been really open and honest about your newfound sobriety. How much of a challenge has that been for you?

It hasn’t been a challenge at all. It’s been really enjoyable and something I’m really proud of. You know, I feel like over the last few years I’ve been sleeping, being a partier. Now that I’m completely sober I feel awake. I feel with it. With or without the belt, sobriety means way more to me than what’s going on with the drama and the belts and the fights and all that stuff. Just staying healthy, that is true wealth and true happiness. And I predict my new lifestyle will definitely pay over into my career. I believe I’ve added quite a few more years on to my career.

Speaking of drama, there’s been no love lost between you and the current champ, Daniel Cormier. Your return was originally scheduled to be against Cormier until he dropped out with a foot injury. How disappointed were you when that fight fell through?

Really disappointed. Disappointed because of how much it means to me and all my staff. We’ve all been working really hard to beat Daniel Cormier. As a team, we had a really strong game plan. We felt as if we were really well rehearsed and all the stars were aligning for us to get the belt back. And now, the fight’s gonna be prolonged. It was a hard pill to swallow but I’m remaining optimistic. Maybe I was meant to take another fight and test my skills against someone else before Cormier. That’s how I’m looking at it.