Jhonson Garzon Coleman Concepts interview on coaching and Jon Jones

In the Jhonson Garzon Coleman Concepts interview, Garzon told Brandon Coleman that he wants to be known as a coach, not only a competitor: he has been cornering fighters throughout the year and expects to corner four at an event in three weeks. The undefeated boxer also described the difficulty of finding Muay Thai training where he grew up in Canada and explained why he believes Jon Jones’s personal life has limited his influence on young fighters.

What did Jhonson Garzon say about Canadian Muay Thai gyms?

Jhonson Garzon said martial arts gyms were difficult to find in his part of Canada, so he began with a traditional martial arts program at a community center and later sought out coaches himself. He described Canadian gyms as welcoming places where fighters who stick with training can become part of a close community.

Starting at a community center

The community-center program was the only one Garzon knew of in his city area. Once he wanted to pursue martial arts further, finding instruction took an active search: he had to contact people and find coaches rather than choose among many nearby gyms.

He drew a distinction between his area and places farther east. Montreal and Ottawa, he said, have more MMA activity, while his part of Canada has fewer options, despite having fighters from Calgary and the surrounding area.

The atmosphere inside Canadian gyms

Garzon said the scarcity of competitors can make a gym’s support especially meaningful. After someone joins and gets through a few fights, he said, the people there tend to take that fighter in as one of their own.

He also described the day-to-day atmosphere as friendly and inclusive rather than hostile to newcomers. In his account, a visitor might find a group trading jokes or listening to someone tell a story. He called the environment “very very inclusive and very polite.”

How does Jhonson Garzon approach his undefeated boxing record and the danger of fighting?

Jhonson Garzon said protecting an undefeated record requires refusing to plateau, even after a fight goes well. He sees complacency as a greater risk than simply feeling fear: opponents change, close fights demand adjustments, and a successful plan from one bout cannot automatically be repeated in the next.

He described the temptation to leave a fight unscathed, write down everything that worked and try to reproduce it exactly. That approach can feel reassuring, he said, but it can also stop a fighter from improving. His commitment is to keep developing rather than settle for an outcome that was good enough once.

When Coleman asked whether danger helps drive competitors, Garzon compared fighting with endurance sports, hiking and extreme sports. Training can reproduce parts of the challenge, but facing a new opponent is different from performing a familiar drill. He called it the thrill of competition.

That thrill is not constant confidence. Garzon said an upcoming fight can seem inviting at one moment and frightening at another. Once the paperwork is signed, a fighter may still be scared and have to compete. He also spoke about the importance of not carrying that fear into the changing room immediately before walking out.

What did Jhonson Garzon say about Jake Paul and influencer boxing?

Jhonson Garzon said it is difficult to make a firm judgment about Jake Paul’s earlier fights. Rather than endorse claims that bouts were arranged, he pointed to what he saw as competitive mismatches: some opponents were older, smaller or coming from another sport. He also sees influencer boxing as a predictable result of online personalities already having audiences.

Paul’s opponents and online audiences

Garzon singled out Tyron Woodley, a former welterweight champion, while discussing the size difference between Paul and some of his opponents. His point was about the circumstances of those matchups, not a claim that he knew anything improper had happened behind the scenes.

On the wider trend, he said online influencers have a straightforward route into boxing because they can bring viewers with them. Their existing audiences make the crossover easier to organize, regardless of how a traditional boxing fan assesses a matchup.

Questions about combat-sports pay

The conversation then turned to money in boxing and MMA. Garzon questioned how long large boxing payouts could continue at their current level, using Conor Benn’s reported payday as an example. He did not offer a figure for his own earnings or a plan for changing fighter pay.

What did Jhonson Garzon say about Alexander Volkanovski and overlooked UFC fighters?

Jhonson Garzon considers Alexander Volkanovski a possible greatest featherweight of all time, pointing to his longevity and wins over Max Holloway. When asked which fighters deserved to be remembered more fondly, he named Francis Ngannou, Anderson Silva and Cain Velasquez, giving different reasons for each choice.

Volkanovski’s longevity and the Ortega escape

Garzon praised Volkanovski for remaining competitive over a long stretch and for his wins against Holloway. He also brought up Volkanovski escaping Brian Ortega’s guillotine before continuing to fight, a moment that stood out to him as an example of the champion’s resilience.

His admiration extended beyond results. Garzon said Volkanovski has a sense of humor and does not cross what Garzon considers inappropriate boundaries when promoting a fight. He contrasted that approach with fighters whose behavior outside competition has changed how he views them.

Ngannou, Silva and Velasquez

Garzon’s first pick for greater recognition was Ngannou. He cited Ngannou’s power, his rematch with Stipe Miocic and his ability to knock down Tyson Fury in boxing. Garzon felt Ngannou’s accomplishments warranted a more prominent place in discussions of UFC heavyweights.

He also chose Silva, discussing how a positive steroid test affected perceptions of an already established fighter. His third pick was Velasquez, whom he said fans do not hear about enough. These were Garzon’s judgments about recognition, not a ranking of the three fighters’ careers.

What did Jhonson Garzon say about Jon Jones, Hulk Hogan and coaching Gable Steveson?

Jhonson Garzon said Jon Jones’s fighting ability does not erase his concerns about Jones as a role model. He believes Jones’s personal life has weakened his ability to inspire young people. The discussion widened to Hulk Hogan and the difficulty of separating public figures’ achievements from their conduct, then to Garzon’s doubts about Jones as a coach.

Jon Jones’s talent and public example

Garzon called Jones an exceptionally capable fighter while saying that his conduct has limited what his career can mean to young athletes. He contrasted Jones with Georges St-Pierre and Khabib Nurmagomedov, whose motivational advice he finds more persuasive because of how he views their lives outside competition.

Hogan came up as another example of a public figure whose work and reputation can be difficult to separate. Garzon said the person behind a performance eventually becomes part of how audiences judge it. His criticism was about the lasting effect of a pattern of conduct, not a denial of either man’s accomplishments.

Gable Steveson and the difference between fighting and teaching

Garzon also questioned whether Jones’s skill as a fighter translates into effective coaching for Gable Steveson. He saw Steveson as a talented athlete but was critical of the coaching approach he had observed around him.

The distinction matters to Garzon because he is pursuing coaching himself. In his view, a great competitor still has to show that he can teach an athlete whose strengths and needs differ from his own.

Why does Jhonson Garzon want to coach fighters?

Jhonson Garzon said he feels he has fulfilled his niche as a competitor and now wants victories as a coach. He has been cornering fighters throughout the year and said he would corner four at an event in three weeks. He hopes the results will establish his ability to help others compete.

Garzon put the goal plainly:

I want to Coach and be known as a good coach as well.

He did not describe coaching as a substitute for his competitive career. He said he has fought and won matches, and now wants to be recognized for what he can do in another role. Cornering fighters gives him a direct way to apply what he has learned.

The immediate task is the upcoming event and its four fighters. Garzon framed his longer-term ambition in practical terms: keep working the corner, help produce results and earn a reputation as a good coach.

Who is Jhonson Garzon?

Jhonson “The Don” Garzon is an undefeated professional boxer and Canada’s number-one-ranked Muay Thai fighter. He competes across combat sports, combining boxing fundamentals with Muay Thai striking.