Quest to Remove All Debate
By Eddie Sanchez
Jon Jones (26-1, 1) is a fantastic fighter. The only thing standing in the way of a truly unblemished record is himself. His lone loss to Matt Hamill in 2009 came by way of his use of illegal strikes in a fight he was dominating. His lone ‘No Contest,’ came in a 2017 rematch against Daniel Cormier due to a testing positive for turinabol. That ruling negated a should-have-been KO victory.
Compounding those two negative marks inside the cage, Jon Jones has had a history of character issues come to light. Jones has failed numerous drug tests,DUI incidents, domestic violences offenses, and a hit and run conviction.
Still, despite all of these issues, his talent can not be questioned, as he is universally regarded as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time. On March 4th, Jones will attempt to enhance his legacy even further at the Heavyweight division.
The 35-year old is tied with Demetrius Johnson for the most title defenses in UFC history at (11). If not for his ‘No Contest,’ and drug offenses, that number would be (14) as the premier Light Heavyweight.
With Ciryl Gane standing in the way between he and the Heavyweight Championship, Jon Jones is a victory away from becoming the UFC’s eighth multi-division champion. The current list includes Randy Couture, B.J. Penn, Conor McGregor, Daniel Cormier, Georges St-Pierre, Amanda Nunes, and Henry Cejudo. These are legends of the organization, and sport as a whole, and Jon Jones is hungry for his opportunity. This accomplishment should not be dismissed either. This year Isreal Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski each attempted to join this list, and both men failed.
Is there room for concern regarding Jon Jones’ attempt at history?
In combat sports, there is always room for concern and doubt. After all, Jon Jones is in an entirely new weight class at 35 years of age. This will also be 37 months after he last stepped in the cage professionally against Dominick Reyes. A fight in which there was much controversy surrounding the decision. Many thought this was a close fight, with some even questioning if he deserved the victory. I thought he did enough as the champion, but the controversy was still present.
Now three years later, with a young challenger in Ciryl Gane (10 – 1) standing in front of him, will father time catch up with Jones? The younger Gane will surely have the edge in the power department, and though Jone’s skills as a grappler are far superior, it’s fair to wonder if the size difference will cause Jon Jones issues.
For the UFC’s sake, I am sure they are quietly hoping that Jones is victorious. After all, stars are marketable and Jon Jones is a historic one at that. With a dominant victory for Jon Jones, this accomplishes three endeavors for the UFC.
(1) A Jon Jones victory temporarily quiets the complaints that fans have with the organization letting Francis Ngannou walk as champion.
(2) It gives the UFC leverage in future contract discussions with Francis Ngannou.
(3) This offers a historic opportunity for Jon Jones to attempt to match Stipe Miocic’s record for three consecutive title defenses as Heavyweight Champion.
To touch on the third point further, the 40-year-old Stipe Miocic himself would be the next highest-ranked contender in the division, which would make all parties involved a boatload of money. Curtis Blaydes and Sergei Pavlovic would be waiting in the wings as potential future opponents, though it is heavily rumored that the UFC is targeting an April date, and is close to securing a fight between the two contenders. Beyond those three, the current top ten is mild at the moment, which offers a clear path for Jon Jones’ attempt at history if he so chooses.
The viability of this goal will become clear on March 4th. We will be able to see if Jon Jones’ weight, skill, and power translate at the highest level in the top division and if he plans on being active in 2023 and beyond. Stay tuned and catch this fight on ESPN+.
