After a unanimous decision against Daniel Cormier in a fight he controlled most of the way, Jon Jones once again proved he is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC. While many folks couldn’t wait to see Jones do battle with the two-time Olympic wrestler, it was Jones who proved definitively that he was the superior fighter.
That means for UFC fans, there are really two fights left they likely want to see more than any other possibilities—a matchup against heavyweight Cain Velasquez and a rematch against Jones’ most difficult opponent to date, Alexander Gustafsson.
Jones certainly left open the possibility of fighting Cain, per Nancy Gay of the UFC:
But before that potential fight is even considered, Bones is likely to face the winner of the Anthony Johnson vs. Gustafsson fight at UFC on Fox 14. And the eight-time defending champion is ready to face whomever steps up next, as he told Tristen Critchfield of Sherdog:
I don’t care which one I fight. To beat Anthony Johnson would be great because that’s somebody I haven’t fought yet, and he has a lot of believers. I‘m here to conquer all the land.
I do believe that I’ve beaten Alexander already—no matter how ugly it was or how close it was—I did win that fight. But at the same time, to shut up more haters and more doubters is starting to be one of my motivating factors.
I do love to fight. I love to honor the gift that God has given me. Proving haters wrong and the doubters wrong is a driving force as well.
One of the haters he would have to prove wrong would be Gustafsson, who posted the following on his Facebook account after Jones’ win over Cormier:
The two fought at UFC 165 in September 2013, and while Jones won a unanimous decision, he was also left bruised, bloodied and battered in a fight that most people consider the biggest test of his career and certainly the closest call during his championship reign.
The two were set up for a rematch at UFC 178, but Gustafsson had to withdraw, which cleared a path for Cormier to get his title shot, even after Jones had to postpone that match with an injury of his own.
Surely Gustafsson would like nothing more than to have his rematch. And for MMA fans who watched their previous battle, that rematch would be about as tantalizing as any potential UFC fight on the horizon. MMA writer Josh Gross certainly thinks so:
While there would be novelty in a Jones vs. Johnson fight, the matchup that will draw the biggest buzz is a rematch against Gustafsson. Nothing draws more attention than the possibility of a champion losing his belt, and nobody came closer to taking Jones’ title than Gustafsson.
Should Gustafsson beat Johnson, the UFC would be crazy to schedule anything other than a Jones vs. Gustafsson rematch. And MMA fans would be crazy to miss it.
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