Rarely does an event force would-be spectators to take part in an alternate reality, one that inexplicably forces the hands of time to decelerate, lengthening each passing day in its wake.
But here we stand, a mere six days away from the end of s…
Rarely does an event force would-be spectators to take part in an alternate reality, one that inexplicably forces the hands of time to decelerate, lengthening each passing day in its wake.
But here we stand, a mere six days away from the end of said reality, six days ahead of one of the most anticipated bouts in recent memory between two of the very best fighters the UFC’s light heavyweight division has ever had to offer. In the red corner stands Jon Jones, arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter the planet has ever seen. In the blue corner stands Daniel Cormier, the man most of us have been led to believe is the biggest threat Jones’ title reign has ever seen.
They don’t seem to like each other, but we don’t mind. In fact, that’s probably a big part of the reason most of us will willingly fork over whatever price the UFC will demand as the world gets ready to meet its rightful 205-pound king.
Read on as we break down each major aspect of the title bout before predicting the winner.
You might think it all started in August, when that little modular stage groaned under the anger of the planet’s two baddest light heavyweights, one steaming toward the other, with only a goggle-eyed PR rep and the restrictions of civilian clothing hol…
You might think it all started in August, when that little modular stage groaned under the anger of the planet’s two baddest light heavyweights, one steaming toward the other, with only a goggle-eyed PR rep and the restrictions of civilian clothing holding them back.
But the history of this beef between Jon Jones, the champion, and Daniel Cormier, the undefeated challenger, runs much deeper. It’s personal, it’s physical, it’s emotional and, yeah, it’s even a little racial.
MMA fans, casual and otherwise, are on a razor’s edge as they wait for these two to mix it up this Saturday at UFC 182, for real and in the cage and with nothing much in place this time to stop the violence.
If you’re not stoked for this one, you’re not paying much attention. Let me help you with that. Here’s a full timeline of the history between these two, chronologically displayed in six easy slides.
A career in prize fighting is one where the total sum of wins, dollars earned and recognition gained typically dictates how successful a fighter’s time spent in the realm of combat sports is viewed. Much like its peers, mixed martial arts is a rigorous…
A career in prize fighting is one where the total sum of wins, dollars earned and recognition gained typically dictates how successful a fighter’s time spent in the realm of combat sports is viewed. Much like its peers, mixed martial arts is a rigorous trade where very few things are given out freely, as every victory or rung on the ladder climbed is earned on a high-risk tilt.
It’s not referred to as the “hurt business” for nothing, and at the end of the day, it’s the business side of things that can cast different shades of gray.
Given the nature and conditions of such a hectic environment, personal progress and the quest for growth on all fronts can easily get lost in the shuffle or pushed to the background, but Myles Jury has never let such things fall out of scope. The surging young talent has continued to push for further development and in the process, has crafted a versatile and well-rounded skill set.
The 26-year-old Michigan native has also kept a keen eye on his affairs and all things that connect to his personal profile, taking sound advice from his inner circle and making sound business moves when they are there to be made.
The hard work invested in every one of his endeavors all yield the fruits that progress has made possible, and his ability to capitalize on opportunities that continue to get bigger serve as further proof and validation that Jury’s methods are working.
“I feel my career both inside and outside of the cage is happening just how we planned it,” Jury told Bleacher Report. “Things are happening how I wanted and expect it to go. I feel very fortunate for that because not a lot of people have come out of the gates as successful as I have.”
The Team Alliance representative has become a surging force in the talent-rich ranks of the UFC’s lightweight division and has continued to look more impressive with each and every step.
His 15-0 record speaks for itself, and with six of those victories coming inside the Octagon—his latest coming by way of knockout over legendary Japanese lightweight TakanoriGomi back in September—expectation and potential fulfilled appear to be lining up perfectly.
Yet, Jury isn’t one to get hung up on labels. He’s focused on doing what he’s poured everything he has into doing, and answering each challenge with steady progression is what matters most.
“Everything feels great right now and the hard work I put in is visible,” Jury said. “All of the sacrifices I’ve made and obstacles I’ve overcome in my past are showing…especially when I go out there and fight. I’m good standing up on my feet. I’m good on the ground, and I’m good in the places in between. I’m good wherever the fight goes, and I’ve worked hard to make sure of that.
“Labels like ‘prospect’ or ‘contender’ really don’t matter to me because I want to become the champion one day. That’s the one that matters, and people can make their labels and put them where they want, but I don’t look at things that way.
“I look at each fight individually because each new opponent brings a different set of challenges and a different set of weapons and I have to deal with that on a fight by fight basis. I don’t think about being a prospect or a contender because that’s all just perceived pressure, and if anything, all it is going to do is affect your focus.”
While the San Diego transplant has steadily climbed the ladder of what is arguably the most competitive division under the UFC banner, he’ll face the toughest test of his career when he squares off with Donald Cerrone at UFC 182 on Jan. 3 in Las Vegas.
Cowboy has been a perennial contender in the 155-pound fold since coming over from the WEC back in 2011 and has amassed an impressive body of work over that three-year stretch, winning all but three of his 15 showings inside the cage.
The Jackson/Winkeljohn-trained fighter has become a staple in the lightweight divsion’s upper tier and will come into his tilt with Jury on a red-hot, five-fight winning streak. Yet, while Cerrone carries the bigger name and set of credentials in the sport, Jury sees his bout with the former WEC title challenger as the perfect next step in his quest to earn a championship opportunity.
Cerrone is an established fighter with an entertaining style, and if Jury can add that name to his resume and extend his own winning streak, his case for future title contention becomes hard to ignore.
“I got into this sport to get big fights and to fight the best in the world,” Jury said. “I’ve put myself in a position to fight a great fighter like Cowboy, and I’m looking forward to going out there and competing. It’s a dream come true and I’m looking forward to throwing down for 15 minutes.
“I want to be the best in the world, and in order to do that, you are going to have to beat some of the best guys out there. Right now Cerrone is on a hot streak. He is a big name—a household name—and that’s what it’s all about.”
In addition to future title contention being on the line when the two top-ranked lightweights step in to handle their business at UFC 182, the bout warrants additional interest due to the respective styles each fighter brings to the Octagon.
Both have proven finishing abilities no matter where the fight takes place and will have deep arsenals at their respective disposals. Where some matchups are fairly clear cut—at least on paper—the tilt between Jury and Cerrone has the potential to explode into an action-packed affair in any number of avenues.
And this only lends further appeal for Jury. Cerrone‘s status in the game makes him a suitable target as is, but with the diverse skill set he brings, the crafty lightweight is looking forward to testing himself and stepping up to the challenges Cerrone presents. He’s excited to mix it up with one of the best the division has to offer and will be looking to get the jump from the opening bell.
“I won’t know until I get in there and get things going, but this could definitely be one of those fights where it is a back-and-forth chess match,” Jury said. “Then again, it could be a fight that gets finished early. There are a lot of different scenarios as to how this fight could play out and I think that’s what makes it so exciting.
“Like I said, I won’t know until I get out there, but if I can take advantage and capitalize early, that’s a given. I think any fighter would want that, so if I can put him away early, I definitely will.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
January 3, 2015, in Las Vegas gives us the biggest MMA fight since the rematch between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva at UFC 168. The main event of UFC 182 features a towering title fight between two essentially undefeated titans in J…
January 3, 2015, in Las Vegas gives us the biggest MMA fight since the rematch between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva at UFC 168. The main event of UFC 182 features a towering title fight between two essentially undefeated titans in Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier.
The fight was originally scheduled for UFC 178 on September 27. But Jones was injured in training camp during a sparring session gone sideways with Alistair Overeem, and the fight was pushed to the January 3 date.
In the lead-up to the fight, during a media event at the MGM Grand, Jones and Cormier got into an altercation that escalated into a melee. You can relive the craziness in the below video.
Jones, the UFC’s light heavyweight champion, boasts a 21-1 career record—his lone loss coming via disqualification (illegal downward elbows) against Matt Hamill. Jones was dominating the fight up until the point when the referee DQ’d him.
Cormier, a former Olympic wrestler and one of the most pedigreed challengers of all time, comes into the fight with an unblemished 15-0 record. Thirteen of those wins came at heavyweight, where he took out four top-10 fighters: Antonio Silva, Josh Barnett, Frank Mir and Roy Nelson.
If Jones is victorious, it will constitute his eighth consecutive title defense, which would put him one defense behind Georges St-Pierre (nine) and two behind Anderson Silva (10). Some already consider Jones the greatest fighter in MMA history with how many impressive finishes he’s racked up against former champions in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, LyotoMachida, Rashad Evans and VitorBelfort.
A win over Cormier would likely move even more fans onto that bandwagon given Cormier‘s MMA record and Olympic wrestling credentials. Many consider Cormier the better wrestler of the two, an assertion Jones has never come up against in MMA competition and one that could prove to be his kryptonite if Cormier is able to win rounds with takedowns, top control and ground-and-pound.
Past the impeccable light heavyweight title fight, UFC 182 features a co-main event between two streaking lightweights: grizzled and possibly better-than-ever veteran Donald Cerrone and hot prospect and possibly the future of the division, Myles Jury.
A win for Cerrone would improve his UFC record to 13-3 and position him as a potential title contender in 2015. A win for Jury would run his UFC record to a perfect 7-0 and would also set him up as a potential title contender next year. Old lion vs. young lion matchups are almost always compelling, and this fight could end up challenging Jones vs. Cormier for Fight of the Night.
Below is a look at the full fight card for UFC 182 on January 3 in Las Vegas:
Unlike ancient philosopher Sun Tzu, who immortalized the notion of attacking an enemy’s weakness, Jon Jones and Greg Jackson believe that besting an opponent in his respective area of expertise represents the easiest path to reaching a breaking point.
…
Unlike ancient philosopher Sun Tzu, who immortalized the notion of attacking an enemy’s weakness, Jon Jones and Greg Jackson believe that besting an opponent in his respective area of expertise represents the easiest path to reaching a breaking point.
So when Jones faces arguably his stiffest test inside the Octagon at UFC 182 on January 3, expect the light-heavyweight champ and pound-for-pound king to test second-ranked Daniel Cormier at his strong suit: wrestling.
During an interview over the weekend with MMAFighting.com’s Shaun Al-Shatti, Jones talked about his ability to adapt to his foes’ strengths and his plan to go after Cormier‘s strengths and weaknesses.
I think I focus on it so much, I focus on their strengths so much that I almost adapt it. I become so familiar with what they’re good at that I just almost adapt it into my psychology, into my skillset, and then subconsciously it just starts playing out in the fight. Doing what they do.
I will try to wrestle Daniel Cormier. I definitely plan on making him work extremely hard for any takedowns he’s going for, and I’m definitely going to be looking for takedowns myself. I’m more than capable of taking him down, and I believe in my top game. So I’ll definitely look to attack Daniel at his strengths, and weaknesses.
Jackson, Jones’ head trainer and the co-owner of Team Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, explained why he agrees that Bones should attempt to out-wrestleCormier, a two-time former Olympian in freestyle wrestling who was named Team USA’s captain for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
We’re definitely going to try to wrestle Daniel, there’s no doubt. We’re trying to beat him everywhere. The kind of inception of that mentality started actually way back when I was working with Georges (St-Pierre), and he took down (Josh) Koscheck. Sun Tzu always has this thing where he says ‘Always attack your enemies weaknesses.’ But that’s not true. If you have the ability to attack your opponent’s strength, the psychological breaking process is much faster than if you’re just attacking his weaknesses.
Since making his debut with Strikeforce in 2009, Cormier has stuffed each of the 11 shots he’s faced, including three shots from former two-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler, Patrick Cummins.
Jones denied the first 16 shots he faced in his brilliant UFC tenure before allowing top-ranked Alexander Gustafsson to tally a takedown at UFC 165 in September 2013. Gustafsson, however, finished just one of his eight takedown attempts in that fight.
The unbeaten Cormier has amassed 18 takedowns in his 12 fights since signing with Strikeforce, including three in his last bout against former Olympic Greco-Roman wrestler Dan Henderson.
In his 15 scraps in the UFC, eight of which were light-heavyweight title fights, Jones has totaled 30 takedowns.
Cormier (15-0) improved to 4-0 in the UFC after thrashing former Strikeforce and PRIDE FC champ Henderson at UFC 173 in May. Cormier has piled up a 12-0 record under the Zuffa banner.
Jones (20-1) holds a 14-1 UFC record, with his lone loss coming via disqualification against Matt Hamill in December 2009.
Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier are set to face off in one of the most tantalizing fights in years. Myles Jury gets to put up or shut up against Donald Cerrone. Hector Lombard gets to face the resurgent Josh Burkman…and more!
So what is worth discussing during the holidays? Find out here!
A career in prize fighting is one where the total sum of wins, dollars earned and recognition gained typically dictates how successful a fighter’s time spent in the realm of combat sports is viewed. Much like its peers, mixed martial arts is a rigorous trade where very few things are given out freely, as every victory or rung on the ladder climbed is earned on a high-risk tilt.