In arguably the most anticipated light heavyweight showdown in UFC history, pound-for-pound great Jon Jones cemented his claim as the best ever by defeating former undefeated challenger Daniel Cormier Saturday night at UFC 182.
The five-round championship tilt delivered on all cylinders, culminating with a unanimous-decision victory for the champ on the heels of near-perfect clinch work and outstanding wrestling.
It marks Jones’ eighth straight title defense and the first time in DC’s professional career that he was outmatched for even a round.
While the grudge match didn’t feature a memorable finish or death-defying effort by the challenger, it did live up to its billing.
But what facts can we take away from 2015’s jumping-off point?
What can we learn from Jones and Cormier after their epic feud came to a head?
Look no further.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
For all the talk surrounding Cormier‘s wrestling and soon-to-be ability to take the champ down and grind out a decision, Jones truly capitalized in close quarters.
His efforts inside allowed him to dictate the pace and fashion of this fight, which comes as a surprise considering most of his damage usually comes from his long-range striking.
Furthermore, Jones’ strength and technique against the cage helped propel him to a two-takedown fourth round and the bout’s overall defining moment.
The final few seconds of the fight when Jones put his hands up in victory then decided to hit Cormier one more time was simply par for the course when it comes to their growing rivalry.
What We Learned About Jones
What can really be said about Jones?
We all knew he was ranked as the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world for a reason. Saying that I was surprised by anything he did would be dishonest.
However, we did see how good Jones’ wrestling can be if he’s forced to focus on that particular discipline leading up to a fight.
Alexander Gustafsson probably wouldn’t take him down again if the rematch actually happens.
The fact that Jones continues to evolve as a prolific clinch fighter just adds to the dangerous weapons he brings to the Octagon every time out.
What We Learned About Cormier
Cormier‘s ability to get inside on Jones and land some combinations needs to be commemorated.
It was important for him to establish his range early because Jones was sporting a massive 12″ reach advantage.
Besides that, Cormier was unable to impose his will like he usually does, at least in the times we’ve seen him dismantle guys like Dan Henderson.
But we knew that it was going to be tough to ragdoll Jones. Jones is easily the most athletic and skilled fighter on offense DC has ever faced and probably ever will.
With a somewhat depleted gas tank and deflated confidence level, Cormier‘s final efforts over the last two frames were thwarted by the champ’s conditioning and relentless pressure.
What’s Next for Jones
There is a small chance that Jones sees this victory over Cormier as the cherry on his light heavyweight title reign and makes a move up to heavyweight, but there’s just too much money in a Gustafsson rematch to do that.
Therefore, fighting the winner of Gustafsson vs. Anthony Johnson, which takes place at UFC on Fox 14 later this month, is the only logical move.
At the end of the day, this fight was not as close as many people may have thought, and a rematch is highly unlikely.
Jones will be back and probably better than ever.
What’s Next for Cormier
It’s going to be difficult for an athlete of Cormier‘s age and class to take his first professional loss as a blessing in disguise, but it’s not like he got ran out of the building.
There were a few good things in this fight that DC was able to do. He should hang his hat on that and understand that it’s not easy beating the best in the world.
With that said, assuming the 35-year-old doesn’t ride off into the sunset and take commentating over fighting, getting back in the cage as soon as he can is the best remedy for defeat.
Facing the loser of Gustafsson vs. Johnson makes the most sense.
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