Tito Ortiz, a former UFC light heavyweight champion who has earned his right in the promotion’s Hall of Fame, feels that current division champion Jon “Bones” Jones will break his record of five consecutive title defenses.
“I would love for it to stick around, but I think Jonny ‘Bones’ Jones will be the one to beat me,” Ortiz said in an interview with Newsday.
“If there’s any person in the world I’d love to see do it, I would love to see him do it because he’s such a good dude. He’s a good guy. I like him a lot. I think he represents the sport very well, I mean, until he got his DWI.”
Ortiz wasn’t one to rag on the 205-pound kingpin, though.
“We all make mistakes at a young age,” Ortiz said. “If he beats my record, then he’s done some great things.”
Jones, 24, crashed his Bentley into a pole in the early morning of May 19 in Binghamton, NY. He was charged with driving while intoxicated in the one-car accident where he suffered minor injuries.
Jones pleaded guilty to the charge on May 29 and awaits a sentencing hearing June 19.
Ortiz won the light heavyweight title from Pride veteran Wanderlei Silva at UFC 25 and defended the title five times before losing the belt to Randy Couture at UFC 44, roughly two-and-a-half years later.
Currently, Jones has successfully defended his title three times in a row against three former champions in Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Lyoto Machida and Rashad Evans.
Jones won the belt from Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 128 and will face his next test at UFC 151 in former Pride/Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson.
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