Beating Machida: Jones Makes No 'Bones' About It

What can be said about Jon “Bones” Jones that hasn’t already been said? The man is the youngest fighter to ever hold a UFC title, has the longest reach in the UFC, and is considered to be one of the most dominant ever in the sport. Jones has a near flawless record of 14-1 with his sole loss coming by way of disqualification in a bout with Matt Hammil that he was dominating before using illegal 12-to-6 elbows, leaving Hammil unable to continue.
There are still many questions left unanswered about the young professional. He has yet to take any real damage inside the cage, so his chin still hasn’t been proven. He has also never been taken down, and the only time he has really done any work inside the cage off of his back was when he pulled guard in his most recent title fight against Rampage Jackson. It came in the closing seconds of the round, and there wasn’t much time for work to be done.
The biggest thing that Jones does not have in his young career is certainty. There has only been one UFC Light Heavyweight Champion in the last four years to defend the belt more than once, and that is MMA legend and UFC Hall-of-Famer Chuck Liddell. To ask Jones to live up to a legend is a tall task, but one not outside the realm of possibility.
Since his sole loss inside the cage, Jones has gone on to win five straight, finishing all of his opponents in stunning fashion. His fight with Brandon Vera saw a badly disfigured Vera exit the cage on his way to the hospital for a badly broken nose. In his next performance, against Vladimir Matyushenko, he landed a total of ten elbow strikes from the crucifix position in just four seconds to end the fight.
Jones defeated then-unbeaten, Ryan Bader by guillotine choke to earn himself a shot at Mauricio “Shogun” Rua’s UFC Light Heavyweight title. It was the most dominant performance Jones had put forth to date, frustrating Shogun in all aspects of the fight. Rua was helpless to do anything in the standup game, getting out struck 75-9. He eventually succumbed to Jones’s onslaught of strikes in the third round and Jones was left as the youngest champion in UFC history at just 23 years of age.
His first title defense was against former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Jones was worried about Rampage’s aggressive style coming into the fight. He didn’t want to be rushed by an aggressive flurry and be knocked unconscious seconds into his first title defense, so he elected to try something new. Jones came out of his corner, three points on the ground. His variation of a shoot-wrestling style protected him from Rampage’s hands on his way in for a takedown to open the fight. It is this type of ingenuity and his ability to adapt in his fights that allowed him to cruise past Rampage, and will aid him in keeping his title for many years.
First, before he can cement his legacy as one of the division’s, if not the sport’s greats, Jones has to figure out his next opponent, Lyoto Machida. Machida is one of the very few karatekas in MMA, and he favors a counter-striking style. Add to that the fact that he was able to outwrestle former NJCAA Champion Rashad Evans, and Machida is a pretty scary obstacle. Jones should still have an edge in wrestling, as I believe he has a better wrestling base than Evans. This is an intriguing matchup because of Jones’s reach advantage versus Machida’s style. Jones’s aggressive striking style plays right into the hands of Machida, but because Jones doesn’t have to get very far inside to land strikes, Machida’s countering may be rendered useless.
The fight will most likely be a strong striking match, but look for Jones to shoot early. He wants nothing to do with the kick that ended MMA legend Randy Couture’s career, so expect to see Jones mix in a few takedowns to throw Machida off balance. As surprising as it may seem, I’ve got Jones and Machida going to decision, and Jones’s streak of five straight finishes coming to a close. Jones gets the unanimous nod, and moves into the annals of UFC history as one of four champions to defend the title more than once.