You probably have more of a life than I do, which means you probably haven’t watched as much mixed martial arts on TV as I have in the last couple days. But if you wanted to, you could have.
On Friday night I had two TVs going in one room, one on HDNet and one on Showtime, as I watched both the Titan Fighting Championships and Strikeforce cards. After a few hours of sleep I got up very early Saturday morning and watched the Dream card on HDNet. On Saturday evening I kept an eye on Bellator on MTV2 while watching the UFC fights on Facebook, on Spike and on pay-per-view.
I watched about three dozen live MMA fights in a span of just over 24 hours from Friday night through Saturday night. As an MMA fan, I was in heaven.
The story everyone is talking about coming out of UFC 135 is Jon Jones‘ impressive title defense over Rampage Jackson, but what this weekend really solidified to me was just how far this sport has come, and how much good MMA there is for the fans to watch. It wasn’t that long ago, before the UFC got on basic cable with The Ultimate Fighter, that getting a chance to watch live MMA was a special occasion for fans. In 2004 — the last year before The Ultimate Fighter — the UFC put on only five fight cards, for the entire year, and all of them were on pay-per-view. Other MMA promotions existed, but few fans ever got to see them live. Now there’s so much MMA on TV that even the hardest of hard-core fans miss some fights. It’s impossible to see it all.
And it’s only getting better. With a UFC heavyweight title fight coming to Fox in November, MMA will really be everywhere. This sport has accomplished so much in so little time that those of us who love it don’t often stop to consider how lucky we are to have so many MMA options available to us. Probably because we’re too busy watching fights.
UFC 135 notes — The UFC 135 main event was a good demonstration of how much this sport has changed: Rampage is one of the great fighters of the last decade, but he’s a fundamentally one-dimensional fighter. Jones is on a completely different level, with far more ways to win a fight. The amazing thing about the way this sport continues to evolve is that some day someone will come along whose fighting style makes Jones look old-fashioned.
— James Te-Huna had never fought outside Australia before Saturday night, as the UFC mostly had him on the roster as a local guy to throw on the undercard in their trips Down Under. But Te-Huna got his first chance to fight in the Octagon on U.S. soil at UFC 135, and he delivered in a big way with a terrific first-round knockout of Ricardo Romero. When Romero went for a low takedown attempt, Te-Huna made him pay for it with a huge low punch that knocked him cold. The whole fight lasted just 47 seconds.
— We haven’t seen a lot of top-notch talent come out of The Ultimate Fighter in the last couple years, but Tony Ferguson, who won Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter, might just be a future star. Ferguson knocked out everyone he faced on The Ultimate Fighter, and he showed off the same lethal striking against Aaron Riley on Saturday night. Ferguson is a force to be reckoned with.
%VIRTUAL-Gallery-134788%
UFC 135 quotes — “I just want to say thanks to Matt Hughes for taking this fight late in his career. He’s a legend and I’m really proud that I had the opportunity to fight a legend like Matt Hughes.”–Josh Koscheck, after beating Matt Hughes in what may have been the final fight of Hughes’ career. Although Koscheck plays up the role of villain in the UFC, Koscheck’s post-fight comments toward Hughes were pure class.
— “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a guy this tired in the Octagon before.”–UFC announcer Joe Rogan on Ben Rothwell in the third round of his loss to Mark Hunt. The Denver altitude didn’t help, of course, but Rothwell really looked like he needs to work on his conditioning.
Good call — Greg Jackson, in the corner of Aaron Riley, did exactly the right thing to protect his fighter after the first round, when Tony Ferguson broke Riley’s jaw with an upper cut. Riley went to his corner and said he had a broken jaw, and Jackson immediately told the referee, “It’s over.” That’s what the corner man is supposed to do.
Bad call — Two of the three judges gave Junior Assuncao a 10-8 third round in his victory over Eddie Yagin, as they should have, but I want to know what the judge who only scored it a 10-9 was thinking. Assuncao spent the better part of the round on top of Yagin, pounding away, and provided a textbook example of what should earn a fighter a 10-8 round. Some judges are too hesitant to award 10-8 rounds, and the one who only scored the third 10-9 for Assuncao is one of them.
Stock up — Tim Boetsch is looking great at middleweight. If you look at the fights Boetsch has lost in his career, they were all against big, strong light heavyweights who could overpower him: Boetsch’s four career losses are to Vladimir Matyushenko, Matt Hamill, Jason Brilz and Phil Davis. Now that Boetsch is at middleweight, he’s overpowering people and earning his “Barbarian” nickname. Boetsch easily beat Nick Ring and is now 2-0 as a middleweight. “I’m loving middleweight so far,” Boetsch said afterward.
Stock down — I didn’t like the antics between Assuncao and Yagin at the weigh-ins, when the two of them acted like they wanted to brawl right then and there. And I really didn’t like how tentative both of them looked once they actually got into the Octagon: If you’re going to act like you’re eager for a knock-down, drag-out battle, don’t step into the cage and act like it’s a staring contest. Assuncao won easily, but he did far too much showboating: He raised his hands up, shuffled his feet, danced around and even waved his finger at the crowd while Yagin was attempting a guillotine choke. Assuncao was respectful afterward and said he was just trying to get in his opponent’s head, but the crowd booed Assuncao’s antics, and as far as I’m concerned, the stock of both Assuncao and Yagin is down after that fight.
Fight I want to see next It looks like we’re finally getting close to seeing Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans, the grudge match between the two training partners that’s been talked about for months. Seeing Jones and Evans in the Octagon together after Jones won the UFC 135 main event was a great reminder that for as dominant as Jones has looked, he’s not without legitimate challengers.
You probably have more of a life than I do, which means you probably haven’t watched as much mixed martial arts on TV as I have in the last couple days. But if you wanted to, you could have.
On Friday night I had two TVs going in one room, one on HDNet and one on Showtime, as I watched both the Titan Fighting Championships and Strikeforce cards. After a few hours of sleep I got up very early Saturday morning and watched the Dream card on HDNet. On Saturday evening I kept an eye on Bellator on MTV2 while watching the UFC fights on Facebook, on Spike and on pay-per-view.
I watched about three dozen live MMA fights in a span of just over 24 hours from Friday night through Saturday night. As an MMA fan, I was in heaven.
The story everyone is talking about coming out of UFC 135 is Jon Jones‘ impressive title defense over Rampage Jackson, but what this weekend really solidified to me was just how far this sport has come, and how much good MMA there is for the fans to watch. It wasn’t that long ago, before the UFC got on basic cable with The Ultimate Fighter, that getting a chance to watch live MMA was a special occasion for fans. In 2004 — the last year before The Ultimate Fighter — the UFC put on only five fight cards, for the entire year, and all of them were on pay-per-view. Other MMA promotions existed, but few fans ever got to see them live. Now there’s so much MMA on TV that even the hardest of hard-core fans miss some fights. It’s impossible to see it all.
And it’s only getting better. With a UFC heavyweight title fight coming to Fox in November, MMA will really be everywhere. This sport has accomplished so much in so little time that those of us who love it don’t often stop to consider how lucky we are to have so many MMA options available to us. Probably because we’re too busy watching fights.
UFC 135 notes — The UFC 135 main event was a good demonstration of how much this sport has changed: Rampage is one of the great fighters of the last decade, but he’s a fundamentally one-dimensional fighter. Jones is on a completely different level, with far more ways to win a fight. The amazing thing about the way this sport continues to evolve is that some day someone will come along whose fighting style makes Jones look old-fashioned.
— James Te-Huna had never fought outside Australia before Saturday night, as the UFC mostly had him on the roster as a local guy to throw on the undercard in their trips Down Under. But Te-Huna got his first chance to fight in the Octagon on U.S. soil at UFC 135, and he delivered in a big way with a terrific first-round knockout of Ricardo Romero. When Romero went for a low takedown attempt, Te-Huna made him pay for it with a huge low punch that knocked him cold. The whole fight lasted just 47 seconds.
— We haven’t seen a lot of top-notch talent come out of The Ultimate Fighter in the last couple years, but Tony Ferguson, who won Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter, might just be a future star. Ferguson knocked out everyone he faced on The Ultimate Fighter, and he showed off the same lethal striking against Aaron Riley on Saturday night. Ferguson is a force to be reckoned with.
%VIRTUAL-Gallery-134788%
UFC 135 quotes — “I just want to say thanks to Matt Hughes for taking this fight late in his career. He’s a legend and I’m really proud that I had the opportunity to fight a legend like Matt Hughes.”–Josh Koscheck, after beating Matt Hughes in what may have been the final fight of Hughes’ career. Although Koscheck plays up the role of villain in the UFC, Koscheck’s post-fight comments toward Hughes were pure class.
— “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a guy this tired in the Octagon before.”–UFC announcer Joe Rogan on Ben Rothwell in the third round of his loss to Mark Hunt. The Denver altitude didn’t help, of course, but Rothwell really looked like he needs to work on his conditioning.
Good call — Greg Jackson, in the corner of Aaron Riley, did exactly the right thing to protect his fighter after the first round, when Tony Ferguson broke Riley’s jaw with an upper cut. Riley went to his corner and said he had a broken jaw, and Jackson immediately told the referee, “It’s over.” That’s what the corner man is supposed to do.
Bad call — Two of the three judges gave Junior Assuncao a 10-8 third round in his victory over Eddie Yagin, as they should have, but I want to know what the judge who only scored it a 10-9 was thinking. Assuncao spent the better part of the round on top of Yagin, pounding away, and provided a textbook example of what should earn a fighter a 10-8 round. Some judges are too hesitant to award 10-8 rounds, and the one who only scored the third 10-9 for Assuncao is one of them.
Stock up — Tim Boetsch is looking great at middleweight. If you look at the fights Boetsch has lost in his career, they were all against big, strong light heavyweights who could overpower him: Boetsch’s four career losses are to Vladimir Matyushenko, Matt Hamill, Jason Brilz and Phil Davis. Now that Boetsch is at middleweight, he’s overpowering people and earning his “Barbarian” nickname. Boetsch easily beat Nick Ring and is now 2-0 as a middleweight. “I’m loving middleweight so far,” Boetsch said afterward.
Stock down — I didn’t like the antics between Assuncao and Yagin at the weigh-ins, when the two of them acted like they wanted to brawl right then and there. And I really didn’t like how tentative both of them looked once they actually got into the Octagon: If you’re going to act like you’re eager for a knock-down, drag-out battle, don’t step into the cage and act like it’s a staring contest. Assuncao won easily, but he did far too much showboating: He raised his hands up, shuffled his feet, danced around and even waved his finger at the crowd while Yagin was attempting a guillotine choke. Assuncao was respectful afterward and said he was just trying to get in his opponent’s head, but the crowd booed Assuncao’s antics, and as far as I’m concerned, the stock of both Assuncao and Yagin is down after that fight.
Fight I want to see next It looks like we’re finally getting close to seeing Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans, the grudge match between the two training partners that’s been talked about for months. Seeing Jones and Evans in the Octagon together after Jones won the UFC 135 main event was a great reminder that for as dominant as Jones has looked, he’s not without legitimate challengers.
Tonight’s kind of a big deal, you guys. UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones has a chance to establish his legacy by defending his belt against former champ Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. And when you look at the supporting card, you’ll notice a similar theme: Between Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck, Takanori Gomi vs. Nate Diaz, and Mark Hunt vs. Ben Rothwell, UFC 135 is all about the old guard making one last stand against the scrappers who came up behind them. Do the old dogs still have some fight left, or will tonight represent a brutal changing of the guard?
Handling play-by-play for CagePotato.com once again is Matt Kaplan, who will be delivering updates on the “Jones vs. Rampage” pay-per-view main card beginning at 9 p.m. ET. Join the party after the jump, and refresh your page every few minutes for all the latest.
Tonight’s kind of a big deal, you guys. UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones has a chance to establish his legacy by defending his belt against former champ Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. And when you look at the supporting card, you’ll notice a similar theme: Between Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck, Takanori Gomi vs. Nate Diaz, and Mark Hunt vs. Ben Rothwell, UFC 135 is all about the old guard making one last stand against the scrappers who came up behind them. Do the old dogs still have some fight left, or will tonight represent a brutal changing of the guard?
Handling play-by-play for CagePotato.com once again is Matt Kaplan, who will be delivering updates on the “Jones vs. Rampage” pay-per-view main card beginning at 9 p.m. ET. Join the party after the jump, and refresh your page every few minutes for all the latest.
Here we go. UFC 135. Rampage vs. Bones. Quick thoughts before we get to anything real: 1) I just watched some of the intro. stuff, and the Matt Hughes-Josh Koscheck clips reminded me not only of what each guy is capable of doing, but also of how many beatings poor Frank Trigg has taken. 2) I want to see Nate Diaz do something grimy -or at least very distasteful – tonight. I don’t even care what it is. 3) Rampage literally sounds like a baby in the “I want my belt baaaaack!” clip. 4) Bones comes across as very humble, very respectful on camera. People love it. I’m extremely suspicious. 5) Am I rooting for Hughes or against Koscheck? Does it matter?
Takanori Gomi vs. Nate Diaz: Rd. 1: Gomi paws at Nate’s jab as they feel one another out. Nate drops Gomi with a left handed slap on the beak! Gomi’s back up, though, and looks calm. Nate’s lead right is busy so far after a good body shot from Gomi. Right-left from Nate lands. Gomi swings a lone, wild right hand from his back pocket. Nate tees off with the lead right and a follow-up stinging left. Gomi is down. Nate has the back, pounds for a bit, but Gomi slips out. Back to the boxing clinic by Nate. Gomi gets a takedown, but Nate slaps on the triangle. Transition to the armbar…….and that’s a tap. Sick.
Post fight, Nate refers to brother Nick as “the best fighter in the world” and then shouts out the Shields family. Cesar Gracie fighters are cool.
Travis Browne vs. Rob Broughton:Rd. 1: Big overhand right misses from Browne, who looks smooth on his big ol’ feet. He presses Broughton against the cage; they trade knees and short punches. Low kicks from Browne are landing clean. Lead left from Browne. Broughton isn’t doing too much here. A right hand from Browne answers a body punch from Broughton. Broughton charges in, but not with much. Big left hook from Browne; his follow-up flying knee is off target. Browne gets an easy takedown in the final seconds and finishes the round in half guard. Rd 2: Broughton is throwing inside leg kicks, but there’s not much sting to them. Browne is still loose and lands a hard leg kick. Body shot, leg kick from Browne. Broughton catches a kick, but Browne is still up. Browne lands 1-2s as he charges in and puts 4 or 5 knees on Broughton against the cage. Browne has Broughton pinned against the cage: not much from either fighter here. Back to the center of the cage and Browne just got a laughably easy takedown (again). He’s got mount now, Browne does. Ground and pound, Broughton rolls over, and then back to his back. Browne ends the round with ground strikes. Rd. 3: Low kick from Browne, who’s slowed down a little. Big right from Broughton, who had Browne against the cage. Browne snatches a leg for a takedown. Side control; half guard. Did I just hear Broughton was a wrestler? Holy shit. Browne is all over him, but not firing too many strikes. 3/4 mount, it looks like, and now Browne has back mount. Broughton rolls to his back. Full mount. Broughton gets it back to guard and works for an arm. Browne is free after a few seconds. Both men stand as the boos pour in before the final bell. Travis Browne earns the judges’ decision, 30-27 across the board.
Ben Rothwell vs. Mark “Super Samoan” Hunt: Rd. 1: Lead left lands for Hunt, who then avoids a shot from Big Ben. Left hook, right hand from Hunt lands on Ben’s chin. Long jabs from Ben; lead left hook from Hunt. Hunt circles away. Ben ducks a hook, and takes Hunt down. Mount. Ben has Hunt against the cage, but Hunt pops back up. Ben jabs. Hunt is bleeding a little on the left side of his head and stuffs a single. And again. Right hand from Hunt connects. He lands an elbow and is on top of Ben. Side control status. Ben is up right away, though. Right hand from Ben and they’re down, with Ben on top against the cage. Heavy elbows! Ben pins down Hunt’s right arm with his knee and keeps working to the bell. Rd. 2: Both guys are bloodied. Lead left hook from Hunt. Hunt stuff another takedown. They both seem tired as hell. Right uppercut from Hunt just misses. Ben jabs. Hunt kicks the back leg hard. Uppercut from Hunt, who lands on top of Ben and in Ben’s guard. Ben wants an armbar, it seems. Heavy gnp from Hunt, who has Ben’s arm trapped across his face. Elbows from side control from Mr. Hunt. Hunt is coming on. Ben scrambles, but Hunt is back on top. Full mount for Hunt. He snatches the left arm. He wants to extend it, but Ben holds on for the final seconds. Wow. Rd. 3: Ben is battered. Right hand from Hunt stings Ben. Uppercuts from Hunt. Hunt sprawls. Another big Samoan right hand. Ben is wobbly. Hunt tries for the trip and drags Ben down. Hunt is in Ben’s guard. Ben is bloody and gassed. The ref stands ‘em up. Ben is on noodle legs. Hunt stuffs a slow takedown. Uppercut from Hunt, but Ben keeps shooting. Huge right from Hunt. These guys are sleepwalking practically. Hunt gets the takedown; side cotrol. Hunt wants to pin down the left arm. Hammer fists from Hunt. Ben squirms for full guard. The ref stands them up? Another uppercut from Hunt. Ben has his hands on his knees. Hunt gets a takedown, but Ben maneuvers to squeeze a headlock and lands in half guard in the final seconds. The judges give it unanimously to Mark Hunt.
Mike Goldberg just called Rob Dyrdek “Rob Deed-rick.” Oh, Goldy…
Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck:Hughes is walking out with Pat Miletich for the first time in a while. I also see Matt Pena, Jeremy Horn, and Robbie Lawler. Old school. Rd. 1: Hughes jabs early to the right eye of Koscheck. Right uppercut and left hook clip combo clips Hughes. Left hook from Hughes now. And again. Another uppercut from Koscheck, but missing. Uppercut from Hughes, the boxer, apparently. Both men sneak in uppercuts, but nothing lands flush. Hughes stuffs the TD and hits a knee. Left hook from Hughes. Big uppercut and a right hand from Koscheck, and Hughes feels it. Clinch. Koz is throwing. Hammer fists from Koz to a downed Hughes. Hughes is down and in trouble. Hughes is out cold with just seconds left! Hot damn. TKO win at 4:59 for Josh Koscheck. Matt Hughes is not retiring, but he says he’s going “on the shelf.”
Jon “Bones” Jones vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson: Rd. 1: Bones crawls out to Rampage, who promptly knees his body. Clinch against the cage. Knees from Jones to Rampage’s thighs. Nice elbow from Jones! Jones is pressing against the cage, but the two meet in the center of the cage. High kicks from Jones are blocked. Jones clinches and looks for a trip, but Rampage stays up. Head kick from Jones is blocked. Jones kicks Rampage’s lead knee. Left hand from Jones connects. Another kick to the knee from the champ. Jones pushed Rampage against the cage as they clinch. Spinning elbow lands for Bones as they separate. Head kick again from Bones. Spinning heel kick from Bones sails high. Rampage swings big at the end of the round. Too little, too late, though. Rd. 2: Bones attacks the lead leg and clinches again. Bones tries another spinning elbow and keeps kicking that lead knee. Low kick from Rampage. Lead right hook misses from Bones. Body kick from Bones. Lead left hits for Rampage. Bones keeps moving and kicking at Rampage’s legs. Swing and a miss with the left for Bones. Rampage isn’t mounting much offense here. Two nice leg kicks from Bones. Spinning back kick hits for Bones. Head kick now. Rampage looks hesitant from the outside. Left hook lands for the challenger. Bones misses with a missile of a left hand. They clinch. Rampage pulls guard from the clinch in the final few seconds. Rd. 3: Bones catches a Rampage kick and grabs a front headlock. Rampage swings wide, but Jones ducks. Leg kicks from Rampage now. Bones keeps mixing up his punches. Bones grabs a single and gets the takedown. Side control. Full mount. Gnp time:elbows. Rampage his escapes. Rampage is up, but Jones has his neck. Rampage is free, but bloody above the right eye. Nasty kick to the gut from Bones. Looping left misses for Rampage. Bones misses a close elbow and avoids a big right hook from Rampage. Lead left hook from Bones. Bones keeps kicking low. Flying knee from Bones and a kick to the knee. Rampage avoids a switch kick. Bones drops for a double at the horn and drops Rampage after the round ends. Rd. 4: Early clinch and Bones gets the takedown. Knees to the body from Bones, who has back control. RNC? Yup! Tapout.
Post-fight Rampage: “…I’m disappointed, but I’m still gon’ get drunk tonight!”
And from then undercard…
Cole Escovedo vs.Takeya Mizugaki:Rd. 1: Mizugaki fires early with crisp combos. Big knee from Cole with his back on the fence. Mizugaki does the same and escapes to the center of the cage. Good jab from Cole. Low kick from Mizugaki. Hard left hands from Mizugaki, who presses Cole into the cage. Cole Thai clinches, but releases. Big right hand from Mizugaki. Mizugaki drags Cole down, but they’re right back up. Nice knee from Cole. Cole climbs Mizugaki and wants a triangle. Mizugaki falls on top of Cole. They’re up again. Good action so far. Inside leg kick from Mizugaki. Thai clinch and knees from Cole. Elbows from the clinch for Cole. This is awesome. Nice left from Cole, who barely misses a head kick. 1-2 from Mizugaki. Left hand to the body from Mizugaki just before the round ends. Rd. 2: Mizugaki catches a kick and drops Cole with a right hand. Cole’s back up. Inside leg kick from Mizugaki. Right cross from Mizugaki. Lead left hook from Mizugaki. Nice kick from Cole. Head kick from Cole, but Mizugaki fires back. And again the head kick from Cole. Uppercut-left hook combo from Mizugaki. Body punch from Mizugaki. Left hand staggers and drops Cole. He’s up. A flurry of big punches and knees from Mizugaki. Huge left hook from Mizugaki to Cole against the cage. Cole is banged up. Mizugaki is pouring it on. Cole is down from a short left and Mizugaki finishes him with a final right hand. Great action from the 135-pounders.
UFC President Dana White announced at the UFC 135 post-fight press conference that Jones, Jackson, Diaz and Koscheck had each won $75,000 bonuses.
Jones and Jackson won the Fight of the Night award for their main event performance, in which Jones forced Jackson to tap out to a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Jackson was a game opponent who didn’t back down from Jones’ constant attacks, and that made it an entertaining fight, even though it wasn’t a particularly competitive fight, as Jones dominated throughout.
Jones had previously won a Submission of the Night award against Ryan Bader, and a Knockout of the Night award against Brandon Vera. Jackson has won two previous Fight of the Night awards (against Keith Jardine and Forrest Griffin) as well as Knockout of the Night awards against Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva.
Diaz won the Submission of the Night for his arm bar of Takanori Gomi in the first round of their fight, which started the pay-per-view. It’s the third time in Diaz’s career that he has won the Submission of the Night award. Diaz has also received four Fight of the Night bonuses.
Koscheck got the Knockout of the Night award for stopping Matt Hughes with one second left in the first round. It’s the second Knockout of the Night award for Koscheck, who has also won a Fight of the Night and a Submission of the Night bonus previously in his career.
UFC President Dana White announced at the UFC 135 post-fight press conference that Jones, Jackson, Diaz and Koscheck had each won $75,000 bonuses.
Jones and Jackson won the Fight of the Night award for their main event performance, in which Jones forced Jackson to tap out to a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Jackson was a game opponent who didn’t back down from Jones’ constant attacks, and that made it an entertaining fight, even though it wasn’t a particularly competitive fight, as Jones dominated throughout.
Jones had previously won a Submission of the Night award against Ryan Bader, and a Knockout of the Night award against Brandon Vera. Jackson has won two previous Fight of the Night awards (against Keith Jardine and Forrest Griffin) as well as Knockout of the Night awards against Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva.
Diaz won the Submission of the Night for his arm bar of Takanori Gomi in the first round of their fight, which started the pay-per-view. It’s the third time in Diaz’s career that he has won the Submission of the Night award. Diaz has also received four Fight of the Night bonuses.
Koscheck got the Knockout of the Night award for stopping Matt Hughes with one second left in the first round. It’s the second Knockout of the Night award for Koscheck, who has also won a Fight of the Night and a Submission of the Night bonus previously in his career.
Jon Jones said leading up to UFC 135 that he wanted to be the first man to finish Rampage Jackson in the UFC. Jones accomplished that goal, forcing Jackson to tap out in the fourth round of an outstanding light heavyweight title fight, and demonstrating once again that he’s one of the best and most exciting fighters in MMA.
“The game plan was to prove I can strike with Quinton Jackson,” Jones said afterward. “I think we did that.”
It was the striking that gave Jones the advantage for most of the fight, but he ended the fight with a submission, sinking in a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Throughout the fight Jones was on a completely different level than Jackson. There was no question who the better fighter was.
“He’s great,” Jackson said afterward. “I thought it was hype. The kid is good. I take my hat off to him.”
Jones, who has always had an unusual fighting style, came toward Jackson at the start of the fight in a low stance, almost like a lineman in football, and attempted to go for a takedown. Jones wasn’t able to get Jackson down, but he was able to grab him and control him in the clinch against the fence.
Once they broke free of their clinch, Jones was working on using his significant reach advantage to stay out of harm’s way and land kicks from the outside. Jones landed several kicks that Jackson had no answer for, and he also landed an impressive spinning elbow. At the end of the round Jones threw a dynamic spinning kick that could have given him a highlight reel knockout, but Jackson ducked under it and survived the round.
In the second round Jackson began to look more tentative about Jones’ attack, backing away instead of going to the inside. Jackson also seemed to be affected by Jones’ leg kicks, which were hammering away at Jackson’s lead leg. At the end of the second round Jones jumped guard and attempted a triangle choke, although there wasn’t enough time to get close to a submission.
A minute into the third round Jones went for a takedown and got it easily, immediately falling into side control and then transitioning into full mount. Jones landed a couple of hard elbows, cutting Jackson, although Jackson showed off a nice hip escape and got back to his feet. From there they exchanged strikes for the rest of the round, with Jones getting the better of the exchanges. At the very end of the third round Jones went low for a takedown, and when the horn sounded Jones threw Jackson off him, which seemed to anger Jackson.
Early in the fourth round Jones took Jackson down against the cage and got on top of him, then transitioned to his back beautifully, sunk in a rear-naked choke, and tightened it until Jackson submitted. As Jackson tapped, Jones calmly got up, then briefly celebrated at the center of the Octagon. After Jackson had a moment to recover, he walked over and hugged Jones, knowing he had just been beaten by a better fighter.
Jackson has nothing to be ashamed of. There may be no man alive who can beat Jones. He’s a remarkable champion.
%VIRTUAL-Gallery-134788%
Jon Jones said leading up to UFC 135 that he wanted to be the first man to finish Rampage Jackson in the UFC. Jones accomplished that goal, forcing Jackson to tap out in the fourth round of an outstanding light heavyweight title fight, and demonstrating once again that he’s one of the best and most exciting fighters in MMA.
“The game plan was to prove I can strike with Quinton Jackson,” Jones said afterward. “I think we did that.”
It was the striking that gave Jones the advantage for most of the fight, but he ended the fight with a submission, sinking in a rear-naked choke in the fourth round. Throughout the fight Jones was on a completely different level than Jackson. There was no question who the better fighter was.
“He’s great,” Jackson said afterward. “I thought it was hype. The kid is good. I take my hat off to him.”
Jones, who has always had an unusual fighting style, came toward Jackson at the start of the fight in a low stance, almost like a lineman in football, and attempted to go for a takedown. Jones wasn’t able to get Jackson down, but he was able to grab him and control him in the clinch against the fence.
Once they broke free of their clinch, Jones was working on using his significant reach advantage to stay out of harm’s way and land kicks from the outside. Jones landed several kicks that Jackson had no answer for, and he also landed an impressive spinning elbow. At the end of the round Jones threw a dynamic spinning kick that could have given him a highlight reel knockout, but Jackson ducked under it and survived the round.
In the second round Jackson began to look more tentative about Jones’ attack, backing away instead of going to the inside. Jackson also seemed to be affected by Jones’ leg kicks, which were hammering away at Jackson’s lead leg. At the end of the second round Jones jumped guard and attempted a triangle choke, although there wasn’t enough time to get close to a submission.
A minute into the third round Jones went for a takedown and got it easily, immediately falling into side control and then transitioning into full mount. Jones landed a couple of hard elbows, cutting Jackson, although Jackson showed off a nice hip escape and got back to his feet. From there they exchanged strikes for the rest of the round, with Jones getting the better of the exchanges. At the very end of the third round Jones went low for a takedown, and when the horn sounded Jones threw Jackson off him, which seemed to anger Jackson.
Early in the fourth round Jones took Jackson down against the cage and got on top of him, then transitioned to his back beautifully, sunk in a rear-naked choke, and tightened it until Jackson submitted. As Jackson tapped, Jones calmly got up, then briefly celebrated at the center of the Octagon. After Jackson had a moment to recover, he walked over and hugged Jones, knowing he had just been beaten by a better fighter.
Jackson has nothing to be ashamed of. There may be no man alive who can beat Jones. He’s a remarkable champion.
%VIRTUAL-Gallery-134788%
Jackson: We just found out who the spy was, and he’s terminated. He’s no longer working right now. So we found out exactly who the spy was…and it’s true, everything I said was true.
Jones: So who was the spy, Rampage? If you don’t mind answering that. Why don’t you tell the world who the spy was?
Jackson: We just found out who the spy was, and he’s terminated. He’s no longer working right now. So we found out exactly who the spy was…and it’s true, everything I said was true.
Jones: So who was the spy, Rampage? If you don’t mind answering that. Why don’t you tell the world who the spy was?
Jackson: You know who the spy was. Only reason why I won’t tell the world who it is, because the guy did work at MusclePharm and the guys at MusclePharm found him and they fired him, and I didn’t want to bring MusclePharm on top…His name is Leonard, and you know Leonard because you were sending him K-Swiss shoes and stuff and everything from your manager. He’s great friends with your manager, and you know I’m telling the truth.
Jones: I was sending him K-Swiss shoes? I have no clue who Lennox [sic] is, Rampage. You need help, buddy.
Jackson: Whatever, dude. You sound guilty, homey.
Speculation has centered on Leonard Amenta, an Executive Vice President of MusclePharm who resigned last Friday. As Jones tweeted in response, “Sucks some poor guy at musclepharm got fired over rampages paranoia.”
Quinton Jackson has been training at the MusclePharm gym in Denver for the past two months, as part of a personalized training camp that has cost over one million dollars. (Not all of that came out of his own pocket, thankfully.) Damn. I wonder how much of that was spent on high-tech surveillance equipment?
Question: Assuming a spy existed in Rampage’s training camp, do you really think that Jon Jones knew about it, or that he ordered the recon mission himself? I’m still willing to believe that this was a rogue employee who leaked info to Jones’s manager for his own motivations. What inside information could Jones possibly hope to gain here? Hell, we already know how Quinton throws that hook…
You probably have more of a life than I do, which means you probably haven’t watched as much mixed martial arts on TV as I have in the last couple days. But if you wanted to, you could have.
For 
