Jon Jones is the current UFC light heavyweight champion. He is 16-1, could arguably be 17-0 and is one of the most dominant fighters in the world today, and one of the most dominant light heavyweights ever. He is young, talented and generally comes off as well spoken.
All that being said, he is one of the most hated fighters in the UFC.
People hate him because of his DUI, people hate him because he seems “fake,” people hate him because “he should be fighting at heavyweight” and people hate him because he believes he is a great fighter.
Hate isn’t enough for his haters, though, as they discredit his accomplishments and victories as well.
Shogun Rua is old and past his prime, or they point to him coming off knee surgery. Rampage Jackson wasn’t motivated anymore and was too focused on making movies. Lyoto Machida didn’t deserve the title shot or they point out how he won the first round, and ignore the fact that he was put to sleep in the second. Rashad Evans is an undersized light heavyweight who should be at middleweight.
Jones decimates every top contender who comes his way, and as soon as he does, the haters have to find some way to discredit the victory.
Simply put, Jones does not deserve the amount of hate that comes his way.
Here, on a Bleacher Report article, in the comments, when discussing a potential fight between Jones and Chael Sonnen, some fans are saying they would root for Chael over Jones because he is essentially the lesser of two evils…and some people really hate Chael.
Jones is young, talented and has the potential to be the greatest fighter in UFC and MMA history. He is 25 years old and, with a win over Dan Henderson, he’ll tie Chuck Liddell and Frank Shamrock for second-most title defenses in UFC light heavyweight history.
Unfortunately, it seems there will always be hate for Jones, and as his fame continues to grow—as evidenced by a new deal with Nike—the hate for him will surely grow, too.
Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow him on Twitter @TimMcTiernan.
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