Tag: Jon Jones

HOUSTON – [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] has relished every moment of the build-up to his UFC 247 title fight against [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] and believes he has the upper hand going into fight night.

Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC), the reigning light heavyweight champion, is a highly analytical fighter who begins the mental tug of war from the moment contracts are signed. Reyes (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) has experienced that first hand over the past couple of months and said he’s enjoyed it.

Jones has gone after Reyes on different levels, and the challenger thinks the obsession has given him an advantage going into his showdown with one of the sport’s pound-for-pound greats.

“The guy loves me,” Reyes told MMA Junkie on Wednesday. “I’m his favorite fighter. He spends all his time on my social (media). That’s good for me. I’ve got a fan in Jon Jones. I’m not worried about that. The funny thing is he thinks he knows me as a human being. He thinks he knows me as a person. He tries to put me in this box of, ‘Oh, this guy has had everything his whole life. He went to college, he has degrees, he’s an athlete. He thinks he’s better than me.’ You don’t know anything about anything.

“You think you know me, but you don’t. Or do you? It’s a mind game. I take confidence from him saying these things about me because he thinks he knows me, he thinks he has me all figured out, but he has no idea. He knows what I allow him to know. He knows what I show him. It’s pretty cool.”

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Jones said he thinks he’s got his opponent well scouted, and for Reyes, that’s music to his ears. Jones might have spent weeks looking into every layer of Reyes’ life and fighting style, but Reyes said he’s been looking at Jones much longer.

Reyes has been preparing for this opportunity since long before Jones even knew of his existence, and he expects that to play to his advantage when they finally share the octagon.

“I’ve been studying Jon from the beginning, since I started,” Reyes said. “It’s no secret he was the champ when I started. I fully respect him, but what he’s done in the past means nothing for this fight. It’s irrelevant. He’s changed, he’s evolved over the years. He’s become a smarter fighter, a more technical, plotting fighter. That’s how you stay champ for a long time.

“You look at your opponents and address what they’re good at and beat them there and nullify their game. That’s what he’s done. He’s been very good at it. But a guy like me, you don’t know what I’m going to come out with. There’s not enough on me. I don’t even know how to beat me. I’m so fresh in this game and changing so much every day.”

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UFC 247 represents Jones’ 15th consecutive fight with a title on the line, dating back to March 2011. For Reyes, however, it’s his first contest of this magnitude. He’s very confident he can dethrone one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, and Reyes said the key to making that happen is to ensure he doesn’t hold anything back once they come face to face.

“I’m going to go out there and fight with no regrets,” Reyes said. “I’m not going to have regrets after this fight. No matter what happens, I’m not going to regret this – ever. I’m putting everything into this. We’re going to go to the center of the octagon, and I’m not going to give him anything. If he wants anything, he’s going to have to take it. I’m not giving anything away.

“Everything has to be taken, and that’s how we’re fighting this fight. And he’s not going to give me anything, either, so I’m going to have to take it.”

UFC 247 takes place at Toyota Center with Reyes vs. Jones set to headline the pay-per-view main card following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass.

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MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the main event for UFC 247.

UFC 247 takes place Saturday at Toyota Center in Houston. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

Jon Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC)

Staple info:

• Height: 6’4″ Age: 32 Weight: 205 lbs. Reach: 84″
• Last fight: Decision win over Thiago Santos(July 6, 2018)
• Camp: Jackson-Wink MMA (New Mexico)
• Stance/striking style: Switch-stance/kickboxing
• Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:

+ UFC light heavyweight champion
+ JUCO national wrestling title
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt
+ 10 KO victories
+ 6 submission wins
+ 7 first-round finishes
+ Athletic and agile
+ Creative and dynamic striker
^ Preternatural instincts and improv
+ Effectively dictates range
^ Teep kicks, oblique kicks, hand posts
+ Deceptively effective inside clinch
^ Superb hand-fighting /grip disruption
+ Multiple takedown tools
+ Devastating ground striker

Dominick Reyes (12-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC)

Staple info:

• Height: 6’4″ Age: 30 Weight: 205 lbs. Reach: 77″
• Last fight: Knockout win over Chris Weidman(Oct. 18, 2019)
• Camp: Cobra Kai (California)
• Stance/striking style: Southpaw/kickboxing
• Risk management: Fair

Supplemental info:

+ Regional MMA titles
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt
+ Wrestling accolades and experience
+ 7 KO victories
+ 2 submission wins
+ 9 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Explosive athlete
^ Measures distance well
+ Solid striking flow
^ Variates well to body and legs
+ Accurate left cross and power kicks
+ Shows good wrestling fundamentals
^ Defensively and offensively
+ Rides and transitions well from topside

Point of interest: ‘Enter The Jones’

The main event for UFC 247 features a light heavyweight title fight with an undefeated prospect who will attempt to dethrone one of MMA’s last bastion of current legends in [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag].

There have been plenty of theories pitched over the years in regards to how to defeat Jones, but few fighters have been able to give legs to even the most reasonable of assertions. And despite the champion’s last title defense sparking more serious talk about his perceived striking skills, the overall results he draws from his process is hard to deny.

Though blessed with some solid athletic gifts, Jones’ almost-unflinching computing of striking exchanges has helped him stay ahead of his contemporaries throughout the years.

Seldom will you see Jones throw the same sequence of strikes within the same minute or even round – unless, that is, he is trying to set up his opposition or walk them into something sinister. And with him being one of the most tried and true stance switchers in MMA, Jones can exercise a plethora of options available to him to help further his agenda.

Whether he’s hiding behind hand posts or disrupting his opponent’s approach with oblique kicks and body assaults, Jones is clearly not shy when it comes to utilizing his length. Still, I would also argue that Jones has proven he isn’t reliant on it either.

Not only does Jones have the aforementioned-abilities to navigate exchanges, he also has made quiet strides in his boxing ability in an effort to help shore up the range that most of his opponents risk life and limb to maintain. Even against the breakneck pressure that Daniel Cormier brought to their second meeting, Jones was able to pivot or shift his way into counter punches like never before in his career.

That said, Jones also has experienced his hardest shots when shifting in or out of this range and is not beyond getting himself crossed up in retreat – something that could prove costly against someone who can match him in both size and speed.

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Enter [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag].

A former collegiate football player who fights out of a southpaw stance, Reyes brings in a host of well rounded, physical attributes to compliment his skills. And despite his background and on-paper experience, the 30-year-old appears to have a natural feel for the striking arts.

Displaying a preternatural sense for range, Reyes uses pressure to draw out reactions. He has hard hooks and kicks that keep his opposition honest, but it’s his pinpoint left cross that acts like a battering ram, both coming forward and off the counter.

Reyes also does well at varying his attack levels, going to the body or targeting the legs with regularity. Should the striking savvy that seems well beyond his years stack up to the senior fighter, then perhaps Reyes can land similar shots that the past two Jones opponents have – particularly in the kicking department.

However, if Reyes is too eager to look for counters in retreat and concede space (as he’s shown at times in the past), then he could end up inadvertently backing himself into the fence and inviting Jones to test him in other ways.

Next point of interest: Crucial clinch warfare