("…but you know me, I never like to look past my opponents.")
As we mentioned over the weekend, UFC hype-magnet Jon Jones is likely to take on fellow light-heavyweight rising star Ryan Bader early next year. You’d think Bones would be psyched to rumble with the undefeated TUF 8 winner, in a fight that could potentially produce a title contender at 205 pounds, or at the very least establish a pecking order in the division. As it turns out, he’s not too impressed with the matchup, telling Inside MMA:
"I’m actually really sick of fighting this type of style. Matt Hamill, Matyushenko, Jake O’Brien…they all have that similar kind of style. Their main focus is that double leg dive and [they have] sub-par boxing…I’m ready to fight some strikers, I’m ready to fight some south paws, I’m ready to really mix it up…I’m trying to secure a respect level with my wrestling. I’m sure Ryan Bader, the advantage he’ll have going in is to be the better wrestler and I’m going to try and prove the UFC wrong again."
We are legally obligated at this point to remind you that anything can happen in an MMA fight, and pride goeth before a fall, and Jones is privileged to get the opportunity in the first place, and blah blah blah etc. But we have to admit that he has a point. Hamill and Matyushenko were advertised as top-of-the-food chain technical wrestlers, and Jones absolutely trashed them. Does Ryan Bader stand a better chance than the guys Jones has already beaten? Probably. For one thing, Bader doesn’t get enough credit as a game-planner; like Jones, Bader has a way of honing in on his opponents’ weaknesses, whether it’s their takedown defense or chins. But you’re not going to out-wrestle Jon Jones, and if you’re Ryan Bader, you’re probably not going to out-strike him either.
For some athletes, fresh challenges are more important than easy victories. (Crazy, we know.) So we understand why Jones might be getting a little antsy. Still, who was he hoping to fight, exactly? The Four Horsemen of the LHW division (Rua, Evans, Machida, Jackson) are already scheduled to fight each other, and Jones has already proven that strikers (see: Brandon Vera) fare no better against him than wrestlers do. We have no doubt that when Jones finally gets his title shot, it’ll be against someone who can push him to his limits. For now, he just has to suck it up and keep climbing against whoever’s put in front of him.
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commentsSorry Dude, Didn't mean to kick you in the Crunch Berries there.
But if it makes you feel better. Mr.Magoo, Dare Devil, Geordi La Forge, and Stevie Wonder are all Judges.
All trained by Cecil Peoples
The real question here is this...If a Rampage VS Jones fight does go down, whose corner is Jesus gonna be in? And as a result, will the other guy decide to get Santa Claus to corner?
Hey-Zeus can not get a green-card so unless the UFC is going to hold the card in Guadalajara,.... Jesus will not be cornering for either of these guys.
John Jones will have The Tooth-Fairy as his cut man,.... and Rampage will have the Easter Bunny greasing him down with down with Yellow Peep's between rounds.... Oh and Batman will be officiating the whole thing. After the introductions by Captain Crunch.
Check your statement first before you imply idiocy against others. Please re-read your quote "perhaps the most idiotic statement I've read on CP in teh past 4 or 5 years" and then realize that CP has only been around since 2007. People on here are entitled to their own opinions, but when you troll your ass along saying things like "and there's been a LOT of idiotic statements" try to refrain from replying to others by using an idiotic statement, genius.
kthxbye. >.<
^____________^
"Still, I think Bader is as worthy an opponent as there is out there for Jones right now."
Agreed. That's why it's so odd that he decides to make these comments. Maybe he's trying to get in Bader's head and make him stand and bang?
dont get me wrong i admire bones and his desire to fight a dangerous striker but be carefull what u wish for
sure bones has good flashy strinking but correct me if im wrong has he KOd anyone and im not talkin ground n pound KO or TKO I mean knock someone stiff, i dont think he has, i can only remember him dropping bonner by spinning back elbow and even then it didnt finish the fight
anyways i wouldnt be so quick to say he would beat the top 4 guys
actually id love to see him get fed to shogun so we can watch his wish come true
maybe after that he wont complain about fighting an unbeaten wrestler.
Jones has beaten all of these wrestlers because he's able to squash their faces with his elbows, et al. Things you aren't able to do in collegiate or olympic wrestling.
And unless I've been watching the wrong sport, "younger and stronger" goes a long way in MMA.
Bader isn't in this fight to test Bones' chin. He's in this fight to stay undefeated. If he has to do it through three rounds of grinding it out on the floor, so be it. At this point, I hope he does.
For the record, I, like most, loathe wrestling. Read everything I've said and then tell me where you're coming from.
I agree with you that practical application is the key, but the difference this match brings is that Bader might actually choose to use his wrestling. Matyushenko tried, but wasn't that good at it, and Hamill never really tried.
And I think people underestimate Hamill's wrestling creds because he was D3, and because of the Deaflympics. When he actually used his wrestling in MMA, he actually was able to outposition and outwrestle 2 former NCAA D1 champions in Rex Homan and Mark Munoz. He was a 3 time D3 champion, with an incredible record there. Doesn't mean he was as good as the D1 champions, but it also doesn't mean he was worse. It just means he never competed against the guys at that level.
So I think it says a lot about Jones that he was able to ragdoll Hamill. And he also took down Brandon Vera with ease, which isn't easy given Vera's stellar greco background. Randy Couture couldn't do much to take Vera down, and Jones did it with ease.
So far, though, Jones has used his size and height to take these guys off of their base. I wonder if he can do the same do Bader, who sits much lower in his stance. Still, I think Bader is as worthy an opponent as there is out there for Jones right now.
Although I mostly agee with you, however, it seems as if you are saying that Jones has fought top tier talent. Which is where I disagree. Bonnar, Hammill, Vera and Maty are the best he has fought and none of them i would consider top tier. Vera and Maty, maybe, at one point but definitely not when Jones fought them.
I want you to reread this & tell me where your point is. You manage to go from talking about 'knowing mma' & how this isn't a wrestling match to talking about Jones' losing a wrestling match.
... where's your head?
Following your logic; Tae Kwon Do tournaments produce great MMA prospects because they know how to point spar better than people who strike in MMA. I mean, because MMA fighters don't have that crisp striking technique required for knockouts, right? (sarcasm for the skim readers)
Practical application is what we're talking about here. It's what Bader & Jones have done inside the cage that matters, not what they've done outside of it. Bader is in this fight to test Bone's chin; not to put on wrestling clinic.
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