jon jones

UFC: Jon Jones using intimidating heavyweights as motivation

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UFC, Jon Jones

Former UFC light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC), is currently preparing for the biggest change he’s ever gone through in his career. He’s in the process of moving up to the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

After reigning over the light heavyweight division for almost a decade, Jones vacated the title earlier this year. Jones became essentially bored at 205 pounds after dominating the division for so long.

Bones Jones is the kind of fighter that needs to be really pushed to shine. The former UFC champion always does his best whenever he realizes the real danger an opponent possesses. Whenever he’s not at all fearful, the performances suffer.

Jones detailed this mindset with ESPN stating, “The light heavyweight division was fun, but I wasn’t scared of any of those guys anymore. Like, none of them. And I think it showed in some of my performances. There was no urgency in some of my last fights.”

It was pretty obvious to me that in Jones’ last three UFC appearances, he just seemed extremely lose in the cage. No real killer instinct, he just more seemed to be going through the motions. As a result, he almost lost two of those fights.

We’ve seen Jones shine in the UFC. However, he’s really shined when he knows that a win is not in the bag. Just look at his rematches with Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson. After being pushed by both men in their first fight, he finished both of them in the rematch.

UFC’s new division increases the fear

For the UFC great, he needs a sense of fear to really pull out his best performances. He just wasn’t getting that at light heavyweight. However, there is plenty of fear and danger presented in the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

The biggest and baddest men in the sport are lingering and waiting on the former light heavyweight champion. A prime example is top contender, Francis Ngannou. Ngannou is the most terrifying knockout artist in the history of the UFC.

He’s an extremely large man with dynamite in his hands. An opponent like Ngannou would present Jones with more danger than he’s ever faced. That’s what is motivating the former UFC champ as he prepares for his heavyweight debut.

“With these next guys I’m going to be going up against, I respect these guys. These guys are intimidating. They’re intimidating as s**t. It just gets me up in a whole different way,” Jones told ESPN.

Anthony Johnson on his UFC return: “I’m trying to bury everybody”

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Anthony Rumble Johnson

One of the most terrifying knockout artist in the history of the UFC is getting ready for his return. Anthony “Rumble” Johnson (22-6) will be returning to action in 2021 after retiring back in 2017.

Back at UFC 210, Rumble was submitted for the second time by Daniel Cormier. Cormier turned away Rumble in his only two attempts to capture the UFC light heavyweight championship. After the second fight, Rumble announced his retirement. 

He stated in his post-fight interview that he wanted to focus on other things. However, it seems that Rumble has caught that fighting passion again. He’s not playing with this comeback that was announced a few months ago.

Johnson entered the USADA testing pool and should be eligible to fight in March. He made it no secret that he’s planning on taking down whatever’s in his way at 205. In an interview he posted on his Instagram page, Rumble made no secrets about his plan.

When asked about who he’s targeting in the UFC, Johnson replied, “Everybody. I’m not going to call out just one person. I’m trying to buy everybody.” Terrifying words from the knockout artist.

Rumble’s UFC return

We are getting closer and closer to Rumble Johnson making his return to the UFC. He’s doing it at a great time considering the light heavyweight division is wide open. Jon Jones vacated the title to move up to heavyweight and the division has a new king.

Jan Blachowicz reigns over the light heavyweights at the moment. The Polish Power is on an incredible run and he’s got a bigtime fight in the works with the current UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya.

When it comes to contenders at light heavyweight, the number one contender is Glover Teixeira. Teixeira has gone on an incredible run of winning five consecutive fights. If Adesanya wasn’t moving up, Glover would be getting a UFC title shot.

However, with Adesanya getting the next shot at Blachowicz, Teixeira will have to wait his turn. It’s worth noting that Teixeira was knocked out in 14 seconds by Rumble Johnson. Not saying they would, but maybe the UFC asks Glover if he wants a rematch while he waits.

However, I don’t think that fight’s likely. Another option for Johnson could be a guy like Johnny Walker. Would be a winnable fight for Rumble, but a fun one for fans.

One thing is for sure, I expect a big name in Rumble’s UFC return. If he comes back and looks like he did a few years ago, he’s only one win away from a title shot in my eyes.

UFC: Jan Blachowicz eyeing a future move to heavyweight

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Corey Anderson

The UFC‘s light heavyweight champion doesn’t plan on staying at 205 for the rest of the career. Poland’s Jan Blachowicz sees his title reign at light heavyweight ultimately leading him to the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

The UFC‘s Polish Power has turned around his career in a major way over the past couple of years. If you go back to 2017, you will find a dejected Jan Blachowicz who had just lost his second consecutive fight in the octagon.

After losing a majority decision to Patrick Cummins, Blachowicz knew he needed to take his career more serious. He really started to focus and train harder than he ever had before. The results since have been astonishing.

Since that loss to Cummins at UFC 210, Blachowicz has gone 8-1 with the only loss coming to former title challenger Thiago Santos. Somehow, Blachowicz seems to be getting better and better with age.

Blachowicz will turn 38 in February of next year. However, he’s on a stretch that proves that age is just a number. In his last four fights, Blachowicz has defeated Luke Rockhold, Jacare Souza, Corey Anderson, and Dominick Reyes. He won three of those by knockout.

UFC’s future heavyweight?

This run has seem Blachowicz reach the mountain top and become UFC light heavyweight champion. However, he’s still not satisfied. Blachowicz is disappointed that he never got the chance to fight Jon Jones.

Jones vacated the UFC light heavyweight title this year when Blachowicz was the number one contender. Blachowicz told Submission Radio that he believes the UFC‘s pound for pound GOAT is dodging him because he knows he will lose.

“That’s (A fight against me) gonna be his first loss at heavyweight. I’ll give him first loss at 205, or maybe heavyweight. We will see. But, he does everything to not fight against me.”

When asked about a potential move to heavyweight, Blachowicz said, “I would like to stay in 205 a little bit longer. But it’s also hard because nobody knows what Jon Jones is doing right now. I think two more years at 205 and then I will go to heavyweight.”

The UFC‘s light heavyweight champion made it clear that he wants to move up to chase Jon Jones. However, he acknowledged that there’s two roadblocks in his way. He must first defeat Israel Adesanya and Glover Teixiera before he moves up.

“First of all, I have to win against Glover or Israel, and after this fight we can talk about Jon Jones. I don’t care. I believe I catch him (Jones) in future somewhere, at 205 or at heavyweight.”

UFC: Should Jon Jones take a heavyweight tune-up fight?

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UFC, Jon Jones

Arguably the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time is going through a career transformation. Former UFC light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) is currently preparing his move to the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

The former light heavyweight champion vacated his title this year due to his desire to move up in weight. Jones has had some run-ins with the UFC this year where he asked for a release, but those talks have since faded.

Jonny Bones wanted to fight top heavyweight contender, Francis Ngannou after the pandemic had started. However, he wanted a bump in his pay which the UFC was not willing to do which caused a spat between the two sides.

Again, there seems to be no more bad blood between the two. Now, Jones is focused on getting stronger as he prepares to chase down heavyweight gold. Dana White said Jones would get a UFC heavyweight title shot whenever he makes his debut at heavyweight.

However, he could be waiting a while. Francis Ngannou is slated to take on the champion, Stipe Miocic, early next year. Currently that heavyweight title fight is being targeted for March, however, it’s not been officially announced.

That means that at the earliest, Jones likely wouldn’t get a shot at the heavyweight crown until the summer. At that point, Jones would have been out of the cage for at least 16 months. So, should Jon Jones take a tune-up fight at heavyweight?

What should the UFC and Jones do?

I’m going to say the same thing that Dana White said in that Jones should be fighting for the UFC‘s heavyweight title in his divisional debut. However, 16+ months is a long layoff for Jones who has already experienced lengthy layoffs in his career.

Let’s say Jones wants to get in a fight before the title fight. Who should the UFC pair him against? Many were saying that Jones could fight the winner of UFC Vegas 15’s main event which featured Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis.

That main event was scrapped after Blaydes tested positive for COVID. That fight is currently being re-booked for either December or January. Personally, I think it would make a lot of sense if Jones were to fight the winner.

Whoever wins that fight would be on a multiple fight winning streak. The winner of that fight would have likely been the number one contender after Ngannou if Jones wasn’t in the picture.

Reality of the situation is that the UFC will likely hold Jones until he can get a title shot. I think the winner of the Blaydes/Lewis fight will likely fight someone like Jairzinho Rozenstruik next as opposed to fighting Jon Jones.

UFC: Curtis Blaydes says he would need a raise to fight Jon Jones

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Curtis Blaydes, UFC

This weekend at UFC Vegas 15, two top four heavyweights will go to battle. Curtis “Razor” Blaydes (14-2,1 NC) will take on The Black Beast, Derrick Lewis (24-7, 1 NC), in a fight that means a big deal for the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

Blaydes is looking to build back a little bit of his reputation after his last performance. Back in June, Blaydes took on Alexander Volkov looking to pick up his fourth straight win inside the octagon.

Going into that contest, Blaydes had back to back brutal finishes over Shamil Abdurakhimov and Junior Dos Santos. Just a few fights prior, he also had a brutal TKO victory over former title challenger Alistair Overeem.

Blaydes went into fight week talking about the fact that he should be fighting for the title. Of course, that’s crazy in theory considering the number one contender in the division has finished Blaydes twice.

Nevertheless, the confident wrestler believed he deserved a title shot. After saying a lot during fight week, Blaydes performance left much to be desired. He got the victory, but didn’t look impressive. Dana White definitely didn’t walk away impressed after the performance. 

Asking the UFC for more money?

If Blaydes picks up the victory this weekend, it would be his fifth straight UFC victory. In theory, he would be the clear number one contender after Francis Ngannou. However, he likely won’t be.

Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC) recently vacated his light heavyweight title to move up to heavyweight. Dana White has already said that Jon Jones would fight for the title in his first appearance in the UFC‘s heavyweight division.

This would put Blaydes third in line despite having won five in a row. Some have floated the idea of the UFC booking Blaydes against Jones in a headliner to get Jones a heavyweight fight and determine the true top contender.

However, Blaydes has conditions if that fight was to be offered. He wants more money. “I’m not going to fight Jon Jones for $200,000. That’s ridiculous. I think a lot of people forget that we get paid what we get paid regardless. I can fight a bum and make $200,000,” Blaydes told Aaron Bronsteter. 

Wrong mentality?

With all due respect to Curtis Blaydes, this is the second time he’s shoved his foot in his mouth on fight week. Blaydes’ boss, Dana White, loves guys who relish opportunities to do something great. Imagine if Blaydes was the first in the UFC to truly beat Jon Jones.

Instead of relishing at that chance, Blaydes is saying he would only take the fight for more money. Blaydes has several things working against him: he’s not a draw, he’s not a champion, he’s not on Dana White’s good side.

I understand that Blaydes wants a title shot and he wants to get paid. However, he’s going about everything the wrong way. If the UFC calls and offers Blaydes Jon Jones. He needs to jump unless he believes in his mind that he has no shot.

If he truly believed that he could defeat Jon Jones, wouldn’t he jump at that chance? Imagine what a win over Jones could do for his career. Blaydes could become a star leading into his title shot to do that. Demanding a raise could end up seeing him on the sidelines as Jones gets his title shot.

At the end of the day, I completely respect what Curtis Blaydes is doing. He could win his fifth in a row this weekend and he has every right to ask for more. However, I would strongly advise him to not let money get in the way of a potential opportunity to welcome Jon Jones to heavyweight.

State of the heavyweight division ahead of UFC Vegas 15

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MMA, Stipe Miocic

This weekend at UFC Vegas 15, Curtis Blaydes (14-2, 1 NC) and Derrick Lewis (24-7, 1 NC) will go head to head in a battle of top four contenders. The winner of this weekend’s fight will be squarely in the title picture.

However, the heavyweight division seems to be paused at the moment. Francis Ngannou (15-3) is the clear number one contender in the UFC‘s heavyweight division. Yet, his title fight has not been booked.

Ngannou has only fought once since the middle of 2019. He has been patiently waiting as the UFC‘s heavyweight title has been tied up for the last two years with the trilogy of Stipe Miocic (20-3) and Daniel Cormier.

Back at UFC 252, Miocic was able to finish off the trilogy with a unanimous decision win over Cormier. However, Miocic needed a little time off after the fight was over which has extended the layoff for Ngannou.

Ngannou has come out this week voicing his frustrations about his prime being wasted. The current plan is for the UFC to book the heavyweight title fight for sometime either in March or April. However, that is not confirmed.

UFC’s GOAT moving up

There’s another interesting wrinkle that’s been thrown into the UFC‘s heavyweight division and that’s Jon Jones (26-1, 1 NC). Arguably the best pound for pound fighter in the world recently vacated his light heavyweight title to move up to heavyweight. 

Jones has his eyes on the UFC heavyweight title, and it’s been said that he will get a title shot in his first shot at heavyweight. However, Jones will not jump Ngannou which means we likely won’t see Jones competing for the title until the summer.

That being said, what does this weekend’s fight really mean? Without Jones, the UFC Vegas 15 winner would likely get the next shot after Ngannou. However, since Jones is moving up, the winner this weekend will likely be third in line.

Assuming either guy wouldn’t want to wait nearly a year for their title shot, the winner will likely have to take another fight. So what are the options for the winner? Well, there are a couple of options.

One option would be for the winner to take on Jairzinho Rozenstruik (11-1). Rozenstruik doesn’t have a fight booked and he’s coming off of a knockout win over Junior Dos Santos. There’s not a clear next opponent for him and he hasn’t fought either man in this weekend’s main event.

Another option would be for the winner to take on the winner of the Alistair Overeem – Alexander Volkov fight in February. Some rematches can materialize with that possibility.

I think the UFC will likely book the winner this weekend against Rozenstruik. We know that the winner this weekend isn’t getting a title shot and they’re not fighting Jones. Keep the winner active, and let them fight Rozenstruik.

The UFC’s Light Heavyweight Dilemma

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Corey Anderson

The UFC has a very complicated situation that is developing in their light heavyweight division. It all started back in the summer when Jon Jones announced that he would be vacating the light heavyweight championship following his incredible run.

Jones said he wanted to focus on capturing the UFC‘s heavyweight title. Following Jones’ departure, the UFC announced that Jan Blachowicz and Dominick Reyes would fight for the vacant light heavyweight championship.

Blachowicz went on to knock out Reyes to capture the title back at UFC 253. A fight was setup to take place before this matchup between Glover Teixeira and Thiago Santos. The fight was looked at as a title eliminator. The winner was said to be in line to face Blachowicz next year for the undisputed light heavyweight championship.

However, a wrench was thrown into the plans here. Last week it was announced that Israel Adesanya would be moving up for a UFC light heavyweight championship match. He’s expected to take on Jan Blachowicz at some point early next year.

Last Saturday at UFC Vegas 13, Glover Teixeira defeated Thiago Santos. The 41 year old won his fifth straight fight making him the clear number one contender in the light heavyweight division. However, because of the Adesanya fight, we have no idea when Teixeira will actually get a shot.

UFC’s Current Situation

When it comes to selling, Israel Adesanya challenging for the title is much bigger than Glover Teixeira for the UFC. Adesanya is a superstar who has the chance to become an even bigger star by capturing his second championship.

For the sake of the article, let’s say that Adesanya is able to defeat Blachowicz next year to capture the title. Glover Teixeira will just get the first crack at Adesanya right? Unfortunately for the 41 year old contender, it’s not that easy.

Adesanya recently said that he would still plan on fighting at 185 and defending both titles if he were to win. There’s a good chance that he would move back down after capturing the light heavyweight title to rematch with Robert Whittaker.

Even if he decides to stay at 205 for back-to-back fights, the likelihood that Teixeira would get the first title shot is low. If Adesanya defeats Blachowicz, the UFC will likely do everything they can to book the Adesanya – Jon Jones fight.

This would be the biggest fight that the promotion could possibly make. However, it would be at the expense of Glover Teixeira. With the Adesanya – Blachowicz fight in the works, the best thing for Glover’s chances is a Blachowicz win. However, if Adesanya wins, God only knows when Teixeira will actually get the shot he deserves.

What’s next for Glover Teixeira after UFC Vegas 13 victory?

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Anthony Smith, UFC

This past weekend at UFC Vegas 13, Glover Teixeira (32-7) made a big statement with his victory. Teixeira was the underdog as he took on former title challenger, Thiago Santos. Santos was making his UFC return after a lengthy layoff due to knee injuries.

The last time we had seen Santos, he fought to a split decision with Jon Jones. He did that essentially on one leg. Prior to that, he had knocked out current UFC light heavyweight champion, Jan Blachowicz when they fought. Many were expecting another knockout from Santos.

As the fight got started, it looked like that’s where we were headed. Santos wobbled Teixeira badly in the opening seconds. However, Teixeira remained poised and he was able to land a takedown. Once the fight got to the ground, it was all Teixeira.

However, in the third round, Santos appeared close to another finish. A massive left hook floored Teixeira. Santos followed up with vicious shots on the ground, but Teixeira wouldn’t go away. Teixeira reversed the position to end up on top.

Following that, an exhausted Santos gave up his back. Once Teixeira had his back, the end was near. Teixeira locked up a rear naked choke and forced Santos to tap out. This was the fifth straight UFC victory for the 41 year old Teixeira who’s enjoying a massive career resurgence.

What’s next after UFC Vegas 13?

There should be a really clear answer to this question. Following UFC Vegas 13, Glover Teixeira should be getting a shot at the UFC light heavyweight championship. The man deserves a shot after stringing together five straight victories.

This fight was originally looked at as a title eliminator. However, it’s not that clear anymore. The prior weekend saw Dana White announce that middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya, would be getting the next crack at Jan Blachowicz. 

With that in mind, it appears that the UFC will have to figure out something else for Teixeira. Teixeira is in a really tough spot right now. If he decides to compete again before getting his title shot, there aren’t a ton of fights out there for him.

One potential option would be a rematch with Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Rumble will be making his return to the UFC in 2021. When fought previously, Teixeira was knocked out in 14 seconds. Perhaps a rematch is in order considering a title shot might not happen anytime soon.

What’s next for Thiago Santos after UFC Vegas 13

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This past weekend at UFC Vegas 13, Thiago Santos (21-8) made his return after being out for well over a year due to knee injuries. Santos pushed Jon Jones to the limit in their title fight and he did it after tearing his knee up in the second round of their fight.

For that reason, many were excited to see the formal UFC title challenger return to action. The general thought was that he would be able to finish his opponent. His opponent was another former title challenger in 41 year old Glover Teixeira (32-7).

Teixeira has turned his UFC career completely around. The 41 year old was looking for his fifth straight victory inside the octagon. The fight started how most thought it would. A big Santos flurry wobbled Teixeira badly. However, the veteran maintained his composure and used his wrestling to get the fight down.

Santos really had no answer for the ground game of Teixeira. After that initial flurry, Teixeira went on to dominate the rest of the first and second rounds. Then, Santos floored Teixeira with a massive left hook to start the third. He appeared close to be finishing the fight.

Santos emptied the tanks looking for the finish, but Teixeira wouldn’t go away. Once again, Teixeira got Santos down, and got immediately to his back. Once there, Santos found himself in rear naked choke where he was forced to tap.

What’s next after UFC Vegas 13?

This was not the UFC return that Thiago Santos was looking for. There were moments in the fight were he looked sensational. However, those were outdone by his lack of defense on the ground and the wrestling skills of Glover Teixiera.

If Santos would have come out and stopped Teixeira in the first round, he would have made a really strong case for a title shot. However, now he must go back to the drawing board and look to improve for his next UFC outing.

In looking at the rankings, there are a couple of fights that could make sense for Santos. A fight with Aleksandar Rakic is one that I think a lot of people would be interested in. Or perhaps, Santos could welcome back Anthony “Rumble” Johnson in his next fight.

Is Israel Adesanya done with the UFC’s middleweight division?

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This past weekend, Dana White announced that UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya, would be moving up for his next fight. Instead of defending his crown next, he’ll be moving up to challenge Jan Blachowicz for the UFC light heavyweight title. 

This move comes on the heels of Adesanya’s dominant performance at UFC 253 where he defeated Paulo Costa. White’s preference was for Adesanya to defend his title in a rematch with Robert Whittaker, however, Whittaker needs more time.

With Adesanya wanting to stay active, the logical move was for him to move up. He will try to become just the fourth fighter in UFC history to hold two belts at the same time. However, Jan Blachowicz is far from a pushover.

For the purpose of this article, let’s say that Adesanya is able to move up and capture the UFC light heavyweight championship. Will he ever return to the middleweight division? Or will he be like Conor McGregor who never returned to featherweight after he won the title.

What will the UFC star do?

Adesanya said that he has very clear plans for 2021. The middleweight champion said to Submission Radio that he plans on capturing the UFC light heavyweight title then he plans on fighting Jon Jones in a stadium.

The Jon Jones fight is the one that all UFC fans want to see. It’s easily the biggest fight that the promotion could make right now. The two men do not like each other and have been talking about fighting for some time now.

With Adesanya moving up to light heavyweight, we appear a step closer to that matchup. Jon Jones is currently focused on his move to heavyweight, however, I feel that he would relish the chance to drop back down to fight Adesanya.

A fun scenario to imagine is if Adesanya captures the UFC‘s light heavyweight title while Jones captures the heavyweight title. Imagine Jones and Adesanya fighting when they control three titles. The fight would be one of the biggest fights of all time.

All this is to say that if Adesanya wins the light heavyweight title, it might be a long time before we see him return to 185 pounds. In fact, we might have already seen the last time Israel Adesanya competes in the middleweight division.

However, Adesanya did tell MMA Fighting that he wants to come back to middleweight eventually. Adesanya said, “No, middleweight’s mine. Middleweight is my perfect weight class. So when I do 205, I’ll just hold up that division once in a while that’s all. I’ll defend my belt when it’s time.”