In a couple of weeks, Jon Jones will take part in his third title fight in seven months when he puts his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight title on the line against Thiago Santos at UFC 239 on July 6, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Possessing one-punch knockout power (example here), Santos is one of the hardest-hitting combatants “Bones” has ever faced. But to hear the 205-pound champion tell it, he is simply another man on a long list of fighters he’s faced with boulders for fists.
That’s why Jones isn’t too worried about what the Brazilian bomber brings to the table because while he does possess the ability to sleep him with one hit, so does his soon-to-be wife.
“No, I’m not worried about him at all. I feel like my fiancée is strong enough to knock me out if I put my hands behind my back and let her punch me right in the chin,” said Jones on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show.
“A lot of people hit hard. Anyone has the power to knock out anybody. My manager can knock me out if I let him punch me in the face.”
While power is an important attribute to have in the fight game, Jones says if you don’t have the smarts to set up the bombs, then it’s pretty much all for nothing.
“It’s about being smart enough to be able to land that punch. I am not worried about heavy hitters, everyone hits hard. The fighters that concern me the most are the intelligent fighters,” he added.
“The guys that can set up those punches and set up a solid game plan. So I am not too worried about Thiago. I have fought many guys with big muscles and knockout power. I’ve been doing that since I was one of the youngest guys in the division,” he concluded.
Indeed, Jones has fought a who’s-who of hard-hitting strikers such as Quinton Jackson, Mauricio Rua, Glover Teixeira and Vitor Belfort, just to name a few. And they have all come up short in trying to land a hard enough blow to cause any major damage, much less come close to knocking him out. Can Santos — who has 11 KO/TKO wins inside the Octagon — be the first?
Jon’s trainers aren’t completely counting him out.