The battle is over, but the war is just beginning between Jon Jones and Rashad Evans.
After getting routed by his former teammate at UFC 145, Evans spoke with UFC analyst Karyn Bryant about his performance and a potential rematch.
“It sucked. I didn’t get the job done, but it’s a lesson, you learn, and it’s a fight business, and this is what happens sometimes. I just gotta do what I gotta do to come back stronger and keep my head up and bring some other good fights out there.”
There was certainly some good for Evans to take away from the fight. He was able to go the distance and land a few good shots that had Jones backpedaling out of the pocket.
With that said, Evans’ main objective was to leave with the UFC title, a feat he never came close to accomplishing.
“I don’t take no victory in [going five rounds]. I wanted to win the fight. It’s not winning the fight, so, a loss is a loss all the way through. I’m not gonna hang my head on it too much. I just got to go back into the gym and just get better.”
The fight is finally in the books, and Jones was declared the victor. Is there any hope of Jones and Evans hashing out their differences, or did fans only witness part one of an ongoing rivalry?
“I still don’t like him. He fought a good fight, and I got respect for him as a fighter, and I had respect for him as a fighter before. I still don’t…I’ll tell you what, we’re gonna fight again.”
Looking for some more MMA news, and perhaps a couple of laughs? Follow me on Twitter @JordyMcElroy.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com