The MMA world has been without one of its best fighter for a few months now, and yet even in his absence we are being reminded of dominant Jon Jones really is. It occurred to me when, yet again, we began debating whether or not Alexander Gustafsson deserved to leap frog Ryan Bader for a shot at Daniel Cormier’s ‘belt’. Those three fighters may have a lot in common, but one thing that sticks out to me is this: Jon Jones has beaten all three of them, and there is no reason to believe he wouldn’t do it again if tasked with doing so.
We’ve seen dominant champions before in this sport. We’ve gotten to the point where it seemed like only rematches would be able to entice said champion to continue defending his belt. And then Chris Weidman emerges from the mist with a long left hook to dethrone Anderson Silva, only to turn around and see that Luke Rockhold, Ronaldo Souza, and Yoel Romero have joined the fold. Suddenly, Johny Hendricks gets his long awaited title shot and gives Georges St. Pierre one of the toughest victories of his careers. When St. Pierre decides to retire on top (because he’s awesome), we aren’t left with a bunch of his body bags as we may have expected. Instead, we are left with the savage Robbie Lawler, GSP’s protege Rory MacDonald, Tyron Woodely, and a whole division full of fresh match-ups. With this, we discovered that maybe they didn’t clean the division out as nicely as we had thought; maybe there was a whole slew of future stars just waiting to get their chance. And then there’s Jon Jones and the light heavyweight division.
The champion going away is supposed to make a division all the more exciting, especially when they have been so dominate. Look no further then the welterweight division as proof of that. So why is it that the light heavyweight division seems so dull? Instead of Robbie Lawler/Carlos Condit matches to drool over, we’re debating whether the so-called champion, who Jon Jones actually defeated in his last fight, should fight the guy coming off a loss to the guy Cormier just beat, or if it should be…Ryan Bader. I like Ryan Bader. I think he’s a very good fighter. But in what other division, save the infamously weak heavyweight division, would a guy like him receive a title shot when his most notable win of late is over Phil Davis? Bader’s good, but he’s not elite, and he’s definitely never proven as much. No one wants to see him fight for the belt, no one thinks he has a chance to win it, and casual fans don’t know who he is. If he beats Rashad Evans in his next fight, yeah, I’ll start believing. But as of right now, there’s just no reason to. So that makes the better option Gustafsson, who as I said, is coming off a loss to Anthony Johnson, who is coming off a loss to Daniel Cormier.
It seemed like the only intriguing fight left for Jon Jones was one with Anthony Johnson, since he would be a fresh challenger, but his performance against Cormier gives no indication that Jones would not bully him into submission in the first round. Rematches with Gustafsson and Cormier are decently marketable, but with the two of them fighting, one of them has to lose again. That being said, the only fight I can see fans being half interested in is the winner of Cormier vs. Gustafsson.
And sure, that fight might sell, due to the fact that Jon Jones is involved (the potential greatest fighter of all time in the eyes of many) and it is either a rematch of his closest fight or a rematch with his biggest nemesis. But then what? What’s left for Jon Jones in the light heavyweight division if and when he wins that fight?
It’s been talked about a lot over his career, but Jon Jones needs to move to heavyweight. There’s just nothing left for him at 205. He’s beaten down every viable contender in dominate fashion, save Gustafsson. But even then, would you really pick the Swede if they were to fight again? Jon Jones has been dominate enough against such elite fighters that I can actually buy into the whole ‘he didn’t take him seriously’ argument. If they were to fight again, I think Jones would beat Gustafsson soundly. It’s important to keep in mind that this division is historically the most exciting and talented division in MMA, making it all the more impressive that Jones has wiped it clean of enticing match-ups.
Sending Jon Jones to heavyweight, after he wins one or two more fights in his original division, benefits the UFC in multiple ways. For one, it can only help Jones grow as a star. Moving up a weight class due to a lack of competitiveness just makes Jones seem even more dominate and untouchable. It would also install some much needed excitement into the heavyweight division, as you know people would be tuning in to see how Jones would fair against the sports’ giants. Maybe the light heavyweight division becomes exciting again once it no longer has a champion that we know would cream every contender out there. Most importantly though, a move up to heavyweight would give fans something they have been clamoring for for years: the elusive match-up they call a super-fight.
The UFC has infamously made themselves look rather silly by calling out boxing for not booking super-fights, while failing to set up their own in the meantime. Who can forget Lorenzo Fertitta condemning the boxing world for not setting up Mayweather vs. Pacquiao because Silva vs. GSP or Silva vs. Jones were going to happen before it was too late? As we now know, GSP has retired and Silva’s reputation as a fighter and person have been damaged. Even if Silva came back and fought Jones right now, it would not be the same as no one considers him to be the best middleweight fighter in the world right now. The UFC can make up for this blunder easily with Jon Jones, as there is no doubt that he is the best light heavyweight fighter on the planet. A match-up with the heavyweight champion would pit title vs. title, with the stakes higher then just that. Jon Jones challenging for the heavyweight title would be a battle for pound for pound supremacy, and could shatter viewership records. It is, in the end, what’s best for everyone.
LAS VEGAS, NV – JANUARY 03: Light heavyweight champion Jon Jones waits in a time-out as he defends his title against Daniel Cormier during the UFC 182 event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on January 3, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jones retained his title by unanimous decision. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images)
