With the long-awaited superfight between dominant UFC champions Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva seemingly on life support, another title holder is willing to try and squash “The Spider.”
In a radio interview with 99.3 The Fox’s Jeff O’Neil Show in Vancouver, Canada (via Bloody Elbow), light heavyweight champ Jon Jones finally admitted that he sees a battle with Silva brewing down the line.
“Yeah definitely, there will be a time, there will come a time. One day, I said it first here. Normally I beat around the bush, but it’s going to happen for sure,” Jones said on the radio show.
Earlier in the week, GSP spoke on The Joe Rogan Experience, the UFC color commentator’s podcast, and seemed to heavily imply he wouldn’t be fighting Silva unless it was a welterweight bout due to the large size difference between the two (via Yahoo! Sports).
Currently, the Tristar Gym product has won 11 fights in a row, including a UFC welterweight record of eight title defenses.
On the other hand, Silva has been on an ever more impressive streak, boasting an unheard of 16-0 mark inside the Octagon, setting the UFC 185-pound record with 10 successful title defenses in the process.
However, if the Brazilian doesn’t feel the need to suck down to 170 pounds, a formidable challenge could await him at 205 pounds, a weight class he has visited on three occasions.
“Bones” is currently the winner of eight fights in a row, including four consecutive title defenses. A win over Chael Sonnen tomorrow at UFC 159 would tie Tito Ortiz’s UFC light heavyweight record of five title defenses in a row.
Given this recent development, is anyone still praying GSP vs. Silva plays out, or is Jones vs. Silva the fight everyone has been waiting for anyway?
John Heinis is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.
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