Daniel Cormier made it interesting, but Jon Jones retained his belt at UFC 182, where he edged his rival in a unanimous decision.
From the outset, Cormier had a clear game plan, which was to keep the pressure on Jones and look for takedowns while negating the champion’s reach. Although Cormier did a decent job of working inside, he couldn’t solve Jones’ takedown defense, as he landed only one takedown on eight attempts.
Many believed an elite wrestler would have the tools to beat Jones by putting the titleholder in a position he’s unfamiliar with. However, wrestlers in MMA don’t come much more elite than Cormier, and even he wasn’t able to make Jones work from the bottom position.
Watch the above YouTube video for highlights from Jones’ win on Saturday.
It wasn’t complete domination, as Cormier did win one round on all three scorecards and came close to winning another, but the UFC 182 main event left many wondering exactly how anybody in the light heavyweight division is supposed to beat Jones. Already considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in MMA heading into UFC 182, Jones continues to look more and more unbeatable by the day.
With his win over Cormier, Jones has now defended his belt on eight consecutive occasions. That puts him one win behind George St-Pierre’s most notable championship reign and two victories away from tying Anderson Silva for the UFC record.
There’s really no longer any question that Jones is one of the best to ever step into the Octagon. Now, it’s all about determining whether he can surpass the likes of St-Pierre and Silva to become the greatest fighter in MMA history.
Statistics via UFC.com.
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