The UFC has released an extended preview for the main event at UFC 135 that will feature Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. The video chronicles each fighter’s most recent bouts prior to their upcoming encounter next weekend. Both Jones and …
The UFC has released an extended preview for the main event at UFC 135 that will feature Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
The video chronicles each fighter’s most recent bouts prior to their upcoming encounter next weekend. Both Jones and Jackson give their thoughts on the upcoming fight, while UFC commentator Joe Rogan provides an analysis of each fighter’s strengths and abilities.
The anticipated bout between Jones and Jackson has the potential to be one of the best fights this year, and in addition to a good supporting cast behind them, UFC 135 could shape up to be one of the most watched UFC events of all-time.
The site was Newark, New Jersey at UFC 128. Jon Jones was just offered this fight a month prior, following his win over Ryan Bader.Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was getting to defend the belt for the first time after he silenced his critics by defeating …
The site was Newark, New Jersey at UFC 128. Jon Jones was just offered this fight a month prior, following his win over Ryan Bader.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was getting to defend the belt for the first time after he silenced his critics by defeating Lyoto Machida at UFC 113.
Jones was only 23 years old at the time, and although this was a classic match of young against one of the most experienced fighters in history, Rua wasn’t quite prepared for the quickness that Jones brought that night.
The first round saw dominance by the challenger, with knees and a vicious ground-and-pound that brought the crowd into a frenzy and “USA” chants aplenty.
The second round exposed the creativity of Jones as he dealt a vicious spinning back elbow in the clinch. Jones dominated the last half of the second round on the ground, controlling Rua’s breathing and slowly gaining confidence. By the end of the round, Jones didn’t look winded at all, while Shogun was fighting off a leg lock and a back fist when the horn went.
The third round saw Shogun attempt a comeback that was stuffed and turned into a submission attempt by Jones. Jones showed incredible patience, controlling Shogun on the ground until he started to tee off. Shogun got to his feet, but the damage was done. He went to the cage; one punch and a kick later and Shogun was down and the fight was called.
“Jon Jones is the youngest UFC champion in history!” exclaimed UFC commentator Mike Goldberg as the fight wrapped up.
Want to relive this fight? UFC.com is offering it for free as a lead up for Jon Jones’ first title defense against Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Here s the link to the video.
If Jones can dominate Rampage as he did Shogun, this could be an early night and a fast fight.
UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage poses many questions leading up to the UFC light heavyweight title bout on September 24, at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. The entire fight card is an exciting one and features many great matchups between both veterans…
UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage poses many questions leading up to the UFC light heavyweight title bout on September 24, at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.
The entire fight card is an exciting one and features many great matchups between both veterans as well as newcomers, but it is the main event that has people talking.
How does the once-invincible Quinton “Rampage” Jackson plan to deal with the seemingly unstoppable force that is Jon “Bones” Jones?
Jones is unique in that he has an arsenal of weapons, attacks and defense at his disposal, and you never know what he’s going to do next.
Being unpredictable is a strategy that was honed by world-class trainer and MMA strategist Greg Jackson and has been passed on to his students and top fighters, who usually employ their game plans with relative ease.
Since joining the UFC in 2007, Rampage has captured the heavyweight title by KO’ing the sport’s most dominant light heavyweight, Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell, has won Knockout of the Night honors, Fight of the Night honors and fought for the light heavyweight title eliminator, twice.
As accomplished a fighter as Rampage is, he will be facing what will most likely be his toughest challenge yet against the young and extremely talented champion.
The last time that Rampage fought a member of Team Jackson, he didn’t do as well as he and many fans had hoped.
His arch nemesis, former Jackson prodigy and former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, was clearly in control for all three rounds, defeating Rampage by unanimous decision at UFC 114.
Evans may have learned a secret about Rampage and used it to his advantage during the most anticipated and hyped grudge match in MMA history, as Evans intentionally threw hard punches to the knees of Rampage while engaged in what turned out to be an anticlimactic wrestling match between the two former title holders.
According to Rampage in an article written by MMAMania’s Jesse Holland, the Team Wolfslair fighter was suffering from a then-recent knee injury which the fighter and his camp had hoped to keep under wraps; both literally and figuratively.
“I remember one other thing he was doing—he was punching me in my knee! It was weird because I had suffered a real bad knee injury in camp but we kept it secret, we didn’t say anything about it and we didn’t even tell the UFC. I told my doctor and that was it, he helped me out but I was going to back out of the fight. The only reason I didn’t back out was the fight had been so hyped and I didn’t want to disappoint the fans. Why was he punching me in the knee though? That’s kind of weird—did he find out about the injury? I don’t know. It’s weird.”
Seeing as how Evans targeted Rampage’s injured knee, will Jones show no mercy as well?
A fight is a fight and a fighter should do everything and anything they can—within the rules—to win.
Jones has crisp, clean Muay Thai, astonishing wrestling, takedowns and throws, an excellent defensive game, doing whatever is necessary to not only win, but finish his opponents with class and style.
So far and to their dismay, no one has been able to figure out Jones’ mysterious strategy and unpredictably dominant style.
Knee injuries are permanent in that they will never fully heal and are prone to re-injuries, both in training and inside of the Octagon.
Perhaps this is the reason that Rampage does not fight the same way that he used to—the way that made him the famous fighter that he’s become.
When is the last time we saw him power slam his opponent or go for explosive takedowns?
Rampage, while not as highly decorated a wrestler as Evans or other top MMA fighters, is still a wrestler by nature, but has had to make certain adjustments in his training and strategy to hide the fact that his knees are blown and still be dominant inside of the cage.
His boxing has improved greatly as demonstrated against both Liddell and Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva, as he finished both of them with clean KOs and avenged two of his most devastating losses.
Now, the question is, will Jones take advantage of his opponent’s weakness and hammer away at Rampage’s knees with his long-legged, lethal Muay Thai shin-kicks in an attempt to punish and displace the contender while stripping him of his ability to stand?
With at least one blown knee and possibly two bad knees, Rampage will be forced to fight within a five-foot radius while attempting to stalk the elusive young champion, looking for the knockout.
However, I believe it will be a futile attempt as Rampage cannot use all of his tools, and Jones will use everything he has to try and finish the brash, lifelong fighter and world-class, former champ.
Will Jones choose to take the easy route and disable Rampage before the sound of the first bell, or will he use his diverse set of attacks to prove that he’s the king of the hill without exploiting his opponent’s exposed injuries?
The riddle to this question will only be solved come fight night at UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage. It’s sure to bring fireworks, no matter what the outcome.
Daniel Cormier’s first-round knockout of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in the Strikeforce Grand Prix semifinal matchup in Cincinnati, Ohio, was an extremely impressive fight for the American Kickboxing Association disciple.Speaking with MMAFighting.com, Corm…
Daniel Cormier’s first-round knockout of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in the Strikeforce Grand Prix semifinal matchup in Cincinnati, Ohio, was an extremely impressive fight for the American Kickboxing Association disciple.
Speaking with MMAFighting.com, Cormier stated, “To be honest with you, I would much rather go down to 205 and fight Jon Jones or whoever is the light heavyweight champion.” The Olympian was responding to a statement regarding the rumor that the UFC will be absorbing Strikeforce talent.
Cormier is not the only competitor to vocalize interest in battling the UFC light heavyweight champion as a barometer to measure his success in the Octagon.
The UFC itself and MMA pundits have lobbied for megafights that include matchups versus Jones, such as current middleweight champion Anderson Silva versus “Bones.”
This recent discussion thread regarding Cormier and past interest by not only fighters, but also experts in the sport demanding a matchup with Jones begs the question: When did Jon Jones become the barometer for UFC success?
Undefeated inside the Octagon (outside of his disqualification to Matt Hamill in 2009), Jones has compiled an extremely impressive 13-1 overall MMA record.
With victories over Mauricio Rua, Ryan Bader and Vladimir Matyushenko, Jones’s MMA resume is gaining traction with his victories over ever-growing top-tier talent.
Athletically one of the greatest practitioners inside the cage, Jones is a marvel to watch with his offensive creativity and ability to create striking angles and execute combinations unlike any other fighter.
Clearly an extremely talented mixed martial artist, the legend of Jon Jones has almost become larger than the man himself.
Defending his championship for the first time against “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 135 in September, Jones has held the title for less than six months.
Compare the title reign of Jones to the aforementioned Silva, and there is no debate whatsoever. Silva has successfully defended his championship a UFC record nine times, holding the title for almost five years.
Silva’s championship reign is most definitely a barometer to measure one’s success against.
Stunningly, however, Jones’s six-month championship reign elicits a level of talk only read in fables and lore, creating the magnitude of comparison equal to that of the five-year dominance of Silva.
Is Jones to blame for the pedestal he has been perched upon? Absolutely not. As a fighter, his job is to compete and win. The scrutiny—or in this case, the legendary status—provided him is resurrected by the media and pundits.
Therefore, should Daniel Cormier call out Jon Jones in such a way as to elevate his career and define his abilities as an ultimate fighter?
I do not believe so. Perhaps Cormier should insist on competing against another Greco-Roman wrestling sensation who is deserving of legendary talk inside the Octagon. And that individual is Dan Henderson.
Or, if Cormier decides to remain within the heavyweight division, perhaps he should channel his focus and attempt to test his overall talents against the likes of Brock Lesnar, Junior dos Santos or even his teammate Cain Velasquez.
Defeating any of those four established, talented and deserving competitors would be worth more than defeating the likes of Jon Jones at this stage in “Bones’s” young mixed martial arts career.
I welcome your comments.
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Even after his epic win over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, few MMA fans know the name Daniel Cormier. However, this will one day change. Cormier will become one of the most legendary figures in the sport. How? By beating UFC light heavyweight champion Jon J…
Even after his epic win over Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, few MMA fans know the name Daniel Cormier. However, this will one day change. Cormier will become one of the most legendary figures in the sport. How? By beating UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Jones is a great competitor, but Cormier has several distinct advantages that Jones has yet to see in an opponent so far.
First, Cormier is an Olympic level wrestler. He has faced the best wrestlers in the world and has beaten many of them. He came fourth in the 2004 Olympic games and was part of the Olympic team in 2008, but had to bow out due to kidney failure.
What makes Cormier’s wrestling so dangerous is his rapidly expanding knowledge of kickboxing. Cormier is training under the tutelage of Javier Mendes at the fabled American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, and it showed in his fight against Silva.
AKA is undergoing a new renaissance and is beginning to give Greg Jackson’s gym—the home of Jon Jones—a run for its money. Rarely has there been a wrestler with such fluid, precise and powerful strikes! This is the work of AKA.
Another distinct advantage that Cormier will bring to the cage is size.
Cormier currently competes at heavyweight, but is carrying around a lot of excess bulk at that weight. A drop to the light heavyweight division is totally plausible, and even likely, considering that fellow AKA member Cain Velasquez happens to be UFC heavyweight champion.
AKA fighters (namely Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck) have been adamant about not fighting each other in the past, and it’s unlikely that particular stance will change any time soon.
Cormier will therefore have to drop to light heavyweight when the UFC either absorbs the Strikeforce roster, or brings Cormier up to the UFC (one of these two scenarios is inevitable but which isn’t certain yet).
How will the fight with Jon Jones play out then (assuming Jones is still the champion by the time Cormier makes it to the UFC)?
The advantages Jones has had over his other opponents—wrestling, striking and overall athleticism—won’t exist in a fight with Cormier.
Cormier can out-wrestle and out-strike Jones (the enormous difference in height and reach won’t mean much, as it didn’t mean much when Cormier fought Silva) and will have the athleticism to keep up with Jones.
Cormier will bring the fight to Jones like no other fighter has before, he will grind on him, push the pace and batter him until Jones either breaks, or the fight is over. Either way, Daniel Cormier will see his hand raised at the end of a fight with Jon Jones.
A new UFC 135 promo has been released featuring UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. The promo shows a more in-depth look into the training, preparation and highlights of both fighters in lieu of their upcoming t…
A new UFC 135 promo has been released featuring UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
The promo shows a more in-depth look into the training, preparation and highlights of both fighters in lieu of their upcoming title bout.
It’s interesting to see the different styles and methods each competitor incorporates into their training schedules.
Jones is coming off a dominant win over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 128, that saw him capture the light heavyweight title and improve his professional record to 13-1-0.
Meanwhile, Jackson has rebounded from a poor showing against Rashad Evans at UFC 114, earning consecutive victories over Lyoto Machida and Matt Hamill.
UFC 135 is scheduled for September 24, live from the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.
The site was Newark, New Jersey at UFC 128.