Tag: Jon Jones

UFC 247 video: Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes pre-fight breakdown and analysis

Dan Hardy and John Gooden weigh in on Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes and how the fight might play out.

UFC 247 fight week is almost upon us.

The promotion’s second pay-per-view event of 2020 is set to kick the February big-fight slate with a bang, featuring a highly anticipated light heavyweight main event. [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) returns to action and defends his belt against undefeated contender [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) in the five-round headline bout.

Ahead of the fight, UFC broadcasters Dan Hardy and John Gooden take an in-depth look at the matchup in the latest edition of their pre-fight analysis series “Inside the Octagon.” Check out the full UFC 247 analysis in the video above to see Hardy and Gooden assess each fighter’s route to victory.

UFC 247 takes place Feb. 8 at Toyota Center in Houston. With two title fights atop the bill, the main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

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With the addition, the UFC 247 lineup now includes:

  • Champ Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes – for light heavyweight title
  • Champ Valentina Shevchenko vs. Katlyn Chookagian – for women’s flyweight title
  • Juan Adams vs. Justin Tafa
  • Mirsad Bektic vs. Dan Ige
  • Ilir Latifi vs. Derrick Lewis
  • Antonio Arroyo vs. Trevin Giles
  • Alex Morono vs. Kalinn Williams
  • Andrea Lee vs. Lauren Murphy
  • Mario Bautista vs. Miles Johns
  • Journey Newson vs. Domingo Pilarte
  • Andre Ewell vs. Jonathan Martinez
  • Austin Lingo vs. Youssef Zalal

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Dominick Reyes: UFC title matters more than beating Jon Jones, ‘just a man with many insecurities’

Sure, beating Jon Jones would be nice on the resume, but Dominick Reyes’ main focus is on the UFC light heavyweight championship.

LOS ANGELES – [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]’ stature in mixed martial arts is such that it’s not a stretch to think whoever eventually hands the UFC light heavyweight champion his first legitimate defeat would value that accomplishment over winning the belt itself.

[autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag], however, does not hold such a viewpoint.

The undefeated Reyes (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is next in line for Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC). He’ll challenge the dominant titleholder next week in the main event of UFC 247.

While the challenger acknowledges Jones’ great accomplishments inside the octagon, he’s not about to lose focus on his main goal: He’s in this to become a UFC champion, and if beating Jones gets him there, that’s just an added bonus.

“(If) I win the belt, I’m in the record books forever – period,” Jones told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at a Thursday media event promoting the bout. “I beat Jon, now it’s the cherry on top. Now it’s creeping into legendary status. But that’s just a nice little cherry on top. For me, winning the belt is everything.”

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Reyes understands why Jones has such an aura. In a UFC career going back to 2008, Jones’ only blemish was a chintzy disqualification call in a bout he was handily winning against Matt Hamill in 2009. Otherwise, he’s lapped the field at 205 pounds.

But when they went face to face after their press conference during UFC 246 fight week, Reyes realized Jones is as human as the rest of us.

“I wasn’t intimidated at all,” Reyes said. “It was interesting. In the faceoffs, that was the first time I ever met Jon in my life, or even (got) near him. We came face to face, and my heart rate didn’t raise at all. I felt at home. I felt like, ‘This is it. This is Jon Jones.’ The allure of Jon Jones is a lot bigger than he actually is.

“I thought he was going to be glowing or some (expletive). My whole life, I grew up watching this guy and exuding all this different kind of energy, and when I saw him and I faced off this far away from him, I was like, ‘This guy is just a man with many insecurities.’ You can see it all over him.”

Reyes acknowledges others who have come before him have said the same about Jones going into their fights, only to sing a different song after Jones tuned them up. But he insists this time things are going to be different.

“Every single person is trying to tell you that, ‘Oh my God, you’re fighting Jon Jones. What are you going to do?’ I’m gonna fight. I’m gonna do what I’m great at. I’m gonna do what I love doing. People think it’s a lot more. It’s still a fight. It’s just a fight.”

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Israel Adesanya: ‘Jon Jones can try and run to heavyweight, but I’ll hunt him down’

Israel Adesanya is confident he’ll eventually see Jon Jones in the octagon no matter what the weight class is.

[autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] is confident he’ll see [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] down the line, no matter the weight class.

In a recent interview with BT Sport, UFC light heavyweight champion Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) said he doesn’t see himself fighting UFC middleweight champ Adesanya (18-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) in the future because he will have likely moved up to heavyweight by that time.

But Adesanya says he doesn’t care about the weight class.

“I saw something on Instagram that by the time he goes to heavyweight the fight will be – who gives a (expletive) about weight?” Adesanya told “Submission Radio.” “I’ve never given a (expletive) about weight. Since when? It’s never been an issue for me. I’ve been a heavyweight in boxing, in kickboxing. I’ll do it in again in MMA. So, it’s never been an issue for me. He can try and run to heavyweight, but I’ll chase him down. I’ll hunt him down if I have to.”

Adesanya is scheduled to make his first title defense against Yoel Romero in the main event of next month’s UFC 248 and has reiterated his intentions of defending his title a few times before considering a move up.

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So while he knows it’s highly unlikely that Jones would be physically able to move down to middleweight, he’s willing to move up – once he takes care of business at 185 pounds.

“Yeah, let him go to heavyweight,” Adesanya said. “Right now, I’m working at middleweight. If he wants to come, he can skip the line if he comes down to middleweight. I’ve said that already. But I’m sure he can’t do that because his frame won’t let him. So, let me do my work, shut the (expletive) up, and I’ll come see you when it’s time.”

Jones on the other hand, returns to action on Feb. 8, when he takes on undefeated Dominick Reyes in the UFC 247 headliner.

Despite both guys already scheduled to defend their titles, they’re constantly being asked about each other.

“I know that when I’m fighting, he tries to talk (expletive) about me when I’m fighting to try and take away the attention from my fight onto him, or to try like, you know, make it about him for whatever reason,” Adesanya said. “But it’s my show. Yeah, but I don’t really care. If Dom wins, good on Dom, happy for him – and I think he’s got a big problem on his hands with Dominick Reyes as well. But if Dom wins, doesn’t matter, I’m still coming for that ass.”

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UFC 247 free fight: Jon Jones leaves no doubt in Alexander Gustafsson rematch

Ahead of his return at UFC 247, relive Jon Jones’ finish of Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 as he reclaimed the UFC light heavyweight title.

Few people have pushed [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] harder than Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165. But, in their rematch of their all-time great first clash, Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) asserted his dominance with a clinical display.

The first meeting between the pair is still considered one of the greatest fights in UFC history. While many initially thought Jones would run through another opponent, Gustafsson proved otherwise as he stood toe-to-toe with the champion, and even took him down to the mat. The big Swede hurt and bloodied Jones as the two battled for five grueling rounds. But ultimately, it was Jones whose hand was raised after a fight that some observers felt he might have lost. To this day, it’s arguably the toughest fight Jones has ever endured inside the octagon.

But Jones would get an opportunity to silence the doubters when the pair were scheduled to meet again for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title more than five years later at UFC 232.

The matchup panned out significantly differently to their first encounter as, early on, Jones looked to utilize the clinch effectively, throwing knees and elbows as soon as Gustafsson tried to exit. Gustafsson threw a few leg kicks early, as the two traded jabs from the outside.

In Round 2, both fighters continued to trade, with Jones mixing up his attack from the legs to the body. An accidental eye poke by Gustafsson caused a break in the action, but the fight resumed shortly after. Gustafsson opened up with his strikes as he looked to push the pace, and found a home for his shots on numerous occasions. But while “The Mauler” was head-hunting, Jones’ focus on the Swede’s legs started to to pay dividends, with Gustafsson’s movement clearly affected by the end of the round.

Then, 30 seconds into Round 3, Jones shot in for a perfectly-timed takedown that spelled the beginning of the end for Gustafsson. From half guard, to side control, to his patented crucifix, and finally back mount, Jones beautifully transitioned and aggressively dropped numerous elbows until referee Mike Beltran, decided that he had seen enough and waved off the fight.

It was a much more definitive win for Jones as he closed the chapter, buried the rivalry and left no doubt about his superiority as he reclaimed the UFC’s 205-pound strap.

Jones returns to action on Feb. 8, when he puts his title on the line against undefeated contender Dominick Reyes in the main event of UFC 247 in Houston.

In the meantime, check out the video above to recap Jones’ dominant performance.

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Anthony Smith disagrees with Daniel Cormier that Jon Jones is unbeatable

Anthony Smith disagrees with Daniel Cormier’s notion that only a heavyweight can potentially beat Jon Jones.

[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag] disagrees with [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag]’s notion that only a heavyweight can potentially beat [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag].

Speaking on Sirius XM’s Fight Nation, former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Smith (32-14 MMA, 8-4 UFC) said he didn’t feel like he was competing against an unbeatable fighter when he faced Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) at UFC 235.

Smith lost the fight via unanimous decision, where Jones was able to control the fight in the clinch, throwing a vast array of strikes to the legs, body, and head.

But despite losing to Jones, Smith doesn’t think Jones is invincible.

“I think a heavyweight would have a much easier time,” Smith said. “I like Daniel, I work with Daniel, I disagree with Daniel. Like. I hear him talk about Jon Jones like that all the time; I didn’t see that. Like, I didn’t feel like that when I was in there with Jon Jones. Obviously I had my own issues, … but I don’t feel like that. I didn’t feel like I was in there with a dude that was unbeatable, and when I hear ‘DC’ talk sometimes, I get the feeling as if he’s talking about someone who’s unbeatable.”

Cormier fought Jones twice, losing the first outing via unanimous decision, and the rematch at UFC 214 via head-kick knockout, that was later ruled a no contest due to Jones failing a drug test.

Smith, however, thinks Cormier was winning that fight, prior to getting finished in the third round, which is why he’s confused at some of Cormier’s comments.

“Especially a man who was winning the second fight and just got clipped and put down,” Smith said. “I think all judges had ‘DC’ up. He was winning every minute of every round up to the point he got kicked, so I always feel really uncomfortable when I hear ‘DC’ talk like that. One, because I don’t see that when I seen him fight him the second time. I seen a guy that was definitely beatable, and I didn’t feel like that when I was in there with Jon Jones.

“Would some more size absolutely help? For sure. If I was bigger and a couple inches taller and had a few more inches of reach on me, absolutely that’s easier to do for sure. Also, if you’re a heavyweight and a big power striker, maybe you can get away with putting Jon Jones out without having to be better than him for an entire fight. That’s how I look at it.”

Smith would rebound from his loss to Jones, with a “Performance of the Night” submission finish over Alexander Gustafsson. He returns to action on April 25, when he takes on Glover Teixeira in the main event of UFC Lincoln.

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Daniel Cormier says ‘it’s going to take a heavyweight’ to beat Jon Jones

Daniel Cormier thinks only a heavyweight has a chance of beating Jon Jones.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] isn’t sure if anyone beats [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] at light heavyweight.

In many people’s eyes, current UFC light heavyweight champion Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) has never lost in his career. The lone defeat on his record is a disqualification loss to Matt Hamill in a fight “Bones” was dominating.

Speaking to BT Sport, former UFC dual-champ Cormier, who technically lost to Jones twice (though one result was later overturned to a no contest), said while he still sees a couple more challengers for Jones at 205 pounds, he just doesn’t think any of them have what it takes to beat him.

“I don’t know who beats Jon Jones,” Cormier admitted. “I really don’t, and obviously you guys know my feelings towards him, but he’s good, man. I think it’s going to take a heavyweight. It’ll be one of those guys – one of those big, big guys that will shut the lights out. I just don’t know if those guys can beat Jones over 25 minutes.”

When saying “those guys,” Cormier also includes UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, who has been trading barbs with Jones, drawing interest from the general public and the media on a potential fight between the pair further down the line.

“He’s a good fighter,” Cormier said of Adesanya. “He has so many weapons and, look at me, I feel I’m one of the greatest fighters of all time, and he (Jones) beat me twice. So, that says a lot about who he is as a competitor. But can Israel fight him? Yes, especially if Jon takes the wrong approach to fighting ‘Izzy.’ You fight Israel Adesanya, you better go get some takedowns because if you stand with him, he’s dangerous for anybody.”

For now, Jones is set to headline next week’s UFC 247 when he takes on undefeated Dominick Reyes, whereas Adesanya headlines the following pay-per-view event when he takes on Yoel Romero at Marchs’s UFC 248.

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UFC 247 lineup finalized: Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes leads championship doubleheader

Check out the official lineup and broadcast plans for UFC 247, which takes place Feb. 8 in Houston.

UFC 247 will feature a championship double-header as two of the promotion’s most dominant champions get top billing.

UFC 247 takes place Feb. 8 at Toyota Center in Houston. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

The main event features UFC light heavyweight champ [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) putting his title on the line against yet another young and hungry contender in undefeated [autotag]Dominick Reyes[/autotag] (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC).

In the co-main event, UFC women’s flyweight champion [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] (18-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) will attempt to make her third title defense, when she faces [autotag]Katlyn Chookagian[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC).

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The card also will feature [autotag]Ilir Latifi[/autotag]’s heavyweight debut vs. the “Black Beast” [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag], a matchup between featherweight prospects in [autotag]Mirsad Bektic[/autotag] and [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag], and bantamweights [autotag]Jimmie Rivera[/autotag] and [autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag], who look to break into 135-pound title contention.

The full UFC 247 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Champ Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes – for light heavyweight title
  • Champ Valentina Shevchenko vs. Katlyn Chookagian – for women’s flyweight title
  • [autotag]Juan Adams[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Justin Tafa[/autotag]
  • Mirsad Bektic vs. Dan Ige
  • Ilir Latifi vs. Derrick Lewis

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Jimmie Rivera vs. Marlon Vera
  • [autotag]Antonio Arroyo[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Trevin Giles[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Dhiego Lima[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Alex Morono[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Andrea Lee[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Lauren Murphy[/autotag]

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 6:15 p.m. ET)

  • [autotag]Mario Bautista[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Miles Johns[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Journey Newson[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Domingo Pilarte[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Andre Ewell[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]

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Jon Jones should only move to heavyweight if the money’s right, manager says

Manager Abraham Kawa doesn’t see a need for his client Jon Jones to move up to heavyweight unless it makes financial sense.

LAS VEGAS — Manager Abraham Kawa doesn’t think there’s much need for his most famous MMA client, [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag], to move up to heavyweight.

The current UFC light heavyweight champion, Jones (25-1 MMA, 19-1 UFC) is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all-time, and was recently named MMA Junkie’s No. 1 fighter of the decade.

He has ran through competition, taking out one hungry contender after the other, to the degree many believe he should move up to heavyweight.

But Kawa thinks Jones should only move up to heavyweight for a fight if the money is right.

“Jon’s comfortable at light heavyweight,” Kawa told MMA Junkie on Thursday during the launch party for Jorge Masvidal’s new El Recuerdo mezcal. “He has no reason to go up to heavyweight unless it makes financial sense for him. He’s already proved that he’s the best fighter that we’ve ever seen. He’s already proved that he’s the GOAT. In my opinion, he’s the GOAT.”

Jones takes on undefeated Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 on Feb. 8.

Current UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic is currently sidelined due to injury and on track to return in the summer, when he’s expected to complete his trilogy with former UFC dual-champ, Daniel Cormier.

So with both of the biggest-money potential heavyweight fighters expected to square off with one another, Kawa doesn’t see much urgency in a Jones move to 265.

“I don’t know if he goes to heavyweight,” Kawa said. “If the challenge is there and the challenge makes financial sense, he may or may not do it, it’s really up to him so that’s a question for Jon, but it won’t be a question that I believe he would answer today.”

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In a recent interview with Canadian outlet TSN, UFC president Dana White was asked what he foresees for 2020, and when asked about a potential Brock Lesnar return this year, White said he likes the odds of that happening.

Kawa, for his part, thinks it would take a fight of Lesnar’s star power for Jones to make the move up.

“Everyone is dying to see Jon jump to heavyweight, well ok, there’s your jump to heavyweight. Give him the big, scary monster that is Brock Lesnar and we could go from there.”

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Claressa Shields’ manager: She could have first MMA fight this year

Claressa Shields’ manager, Mark Taffet, said the three-division boxing champion could have her first MMA fight before the end of the year.

Claressa Shields’ manager said it’s possible she will have her first cage fight before the end of year.

Mark Taffet told ESPN that he and his client believe the three-division titleholder can continue to box and pursue a second career in Mixed Martial Arts simultaneously.

“There hasn’t been a conversation about moving full time,” Taffet said. “It’s all been a discussion about being the next great two-sport athlete.”

Shields, 24, has trained with MMA stars Cris Cyborg and Kayla Harrison and, according to ESPN, plans to work with UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones next month.

“She got her feet wet athletically, her toe in the water athletically,” Taffet said. “The next step for us would be to look at a few different trainers and coaches and speak to them and then decide who an appropriate coach and trainer would be and then make a plan for her to begin training while she continues to blaze trails in boxing.”

Shields told ESPN last year that she wouldn’t want to enter the octagon unless she trained in MMA for a year.

“Just the stuff that I don’t know, like jiu-jitsu and kicking and all that stuff if I wanted to consider it,” said Shields, who was less serious about the move at the time.

Said Taffet: “Claressa doesn’t put timetables on it because she is carefully and rigorously investigating all aspects of the sport and the organizations. But we would like to do something in the cage at the end of 2020 or surely within 12 months.”

Taffet said he has spoken with all four major promotions – UFC, Bellator, PFL and ONE Championship — about working with Shields but no decisions have been made.

Shields (10-0, 2 KOs) is coming off a one-sided decision victory over Ivana Habazin on Jan. 10. That victory gave her titles in three weight classes in only 10 fights, which is a record regardless of gender.

Dana White weighs in on odds of McGregor-Khabib rematch in 2020, Lesnar return, Jones at heavyweight

Dana White is predicting 2020 will be a star-studded year for the UFC and calculates the odds for Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones and more.

Dana White is predicting 2020 will be a star-studded year for the UFC.

In his annual predictions for the year with TSN, White weighed in on the odds of [autotag]Brock Lesnar[/autotag] competing in the UFC in 2020; [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] moving up to heavyweight; [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] walking away from the sport; [autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag]’s “BMF” title; and what’s next for [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] after Saturday’s UFC 246 main event against Donald Cerrone.

White also discussed the likelihood of the [autotag]Nick Diaz[/autotag], [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] and [autotag]Georges St-Pierre[/autotag] competing this year, [autotag]Anderson Silva[/autotag]’s return in 2020, and if boxing champion [autotag]Claressa Shields[/autotag] will fight in the UFC.

If things go White’s way, we could be looking at some massive fights and numbers for the promotion.

Check out White’s predictions in the video above.

The Blue Corner is MMAjunkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly seriously, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

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