Depending on your opinion, which as your elders always reminded you as a child–that’s all it is, Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko is just hours away from becoming the latest victim of Jon “Bones” Jones. As we all know Jones is a huge favorite heading into tonight’s UFC on Versus card, despite the fact that by the time the walking highlight reel made his pro debut in 2008, Matyushenko already had 20 bouts under his belt (one would think a tool belt could come in handy for a janitor no?).
If you’re someone who thinks Matyushenko will give Jones a run for his money, the argument could sound like this: the former IFL champ will look to use his extensive wrestling abilities, control Jones against the cage or on the mat, and grind out the win. Jones’ thoughts on this? Well in a recent interview with MMA Weekly he dismissed that line of thinking, stating that people said similar things about Jake O’Brien and Matt Hamill. True, neither dude made out that well (unless you think Hamill’s DQ win by eating illegal elbows is cause for celebration). Jones also offered this:
“What I’m most excited about with this fight is Vladimir’s not really great at anything,” said Jones. “He’s a good wrestler, he’s a powerful puncher, he’s decent at jiu-jitsu, but he’s not known for being great at anything. This is going to be a fight where I can display how well rounded I am right now.”
Not a bad breakdown really, although Vladimir would disagree, particularly about the wrestling part. But that’s just Jon’s opinion. To bet on the fight head here.