Jon Jones won the battle at UFC 165, but Alexander Gustafsson vows he’ll be the one winning the war.
Before UFC 165, Jones was thought to have no equal at 205 pounds. The UFC light heavyweight champ had effortlessly walked through every surging contender and legend thrown his way.
While Gustafsson was seen as a worthy adversary, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone giving him the slightest bit of a chance against a gargantuan talent like Jones, the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
“Greatness Within Reach” was the slogan for the main event bout. Initially, many in the MMA community shared a few chuckles from the cheesy moniker that referenced Gustafsson’s size in hopes of maximizing interest in the fight.
Those individuals realized quite quickly how wrong they were after the first round of the fight. Gustafsson gave Jones all he could handle in a 25-minute classic that many are calling the greatest title fight in UFC history. When it was time to render a verdict, the MMA community was more split than the United States Congress.
Unfortunately for Gustafsson, the only opinions that mattered, the judges, all gave the fight to Jones. Many expected an immediate rematch would be handed down considering the controversy surrounding the decision.
Initially, UFC President Dana White hinted at the likely possibility of a rematch being on tap, but his statements proved to be nothing more than mere flirtation of an idea, as it was announced Glover Teixeira would be getting the next title shot.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, Gustafsson informed Ariel Helwani that Jon Jones’ time is still coming:
People can say that I won the fight or that I didn’t win the fight, that I won the scorecards or anything. It’s all up to the judges. I didn’t do enough to win the fight and that’s enough for me. That’s enough for me, I don’t need to know anymore. I will just feel worse knowing anything else. … I’m not happy how everything ended and I want that belt. That’s my big goal. I will have my rematch and I will get that belt one day and he knows it, too. So, I can’t wait.
That “one day” could be next year.
If Jones and Gustafsson both win in their next fights, White told MMAFighting.com the UFC would “100 percent” do the rematch.
Once again, there will be “Greatness Within Reach,” but this time no one will be laughing.
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