Legal issues saw Jones stripped of his title after felony hit-and-run charges, his belt being held by Daniel Cornier ever since.
And in his return to action, Jones secured the win that sets up a showdown with Cornier who would have been his opponent at UFC 197 but for an injury.
Jones was not at his best at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and said after the bout that he is not content with the interim gold and his eyes are firmly set on Cornier.
“I don’t think I want that belt, it’s not the real belt. I want my actual belt back,” said Jones.
“It definitely took me a while to pull the trigger tonight and I felt like I used 20 percent of the technique I actually know,” Jones said.
"I don't think I even want that belt." @JonnyBones #UFC197 https://t.co/09YARXViLG
— #UFC197 (@ufc) April 24, 2016
The 28-year-old’s win was unanimous in his favour by the three scoring judges and his career record now moves to 22-1, while 33-year-old Saint Preux slips to 19-8.
“My next fight’s going to be a helluva lot better, I guarantee it,” said Jones, who did warm to proceedings as the match wore on. “I’m really excited to be fighting Daniel Cormier.”
Elsewhere at UFC 197, Demetrious Johnson retained his flyweight title with a first-round TKO of Henry Cejudo, Edson Barboza defeated Anthony Pettis, Robert Whittaker overcame Rafael Natal and Yair Rodriguez beat Andre Fili.
