Arms lifted in defiance, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones retained his title Saturday night in the most braggadocios manner possible, by belittling the patented grinding mindset of his opponent cum hated rival Daniel Cormier. Was the action perceived as gloating by Cormier and nearly every fan watching? You bet it was, but it was also a liberating moment for Jones who has long been chastised for being fake and hypocritical.
Jon Jones true personality shined bright during the lead up to Saturday’s UFC 182 card. Gone was his insistence to do and say all the perceived “right things” to further his brand and in its place was a man, the Baddest Man on the Planet, talking shit with a level of vitriol never before seen from the UFC champ. This was Jones in his truest form. Jones is arrogant, self-centered, and borderline mean. But this is the fight game. We are not asking Jones to teach 10 year olds, no, we are asking him to beat the hell out of another man. Blessed with the same freakish athletic ability and fighting acumen you too would find it hard to retain an air of humility.
Saturday night the real Jones was on display for the world to see. The most anticipated fight in recent history saw Jones beat Cormier, an Olympic wrestler of the highest order, at his own game. Eschewing his considerable reach advantage, Jones took the fight to Cormier punishing him in the clinch with elbows, punches, and vicious knees. When getting the best of Cormier standing was not enough, Jones took Cormier, again one of the best wrestlers in all of MMA, down with relative ease and frequency. By the end of the fourth round the fight was by many metrics a foregone conclusion. Try as he might Cormier had no answer to the diversity of Jones’ attacks. Was it a close fight? Not really. But, it was a competitive fight.
Jones finds new and more impressive ways to evolve his game. He is a fighter of considerable talent and intelligence and his understanding of moment in the cage is second to none. While many will claim that it is too soon to crown Jones the greatest of all time, to date his resume sure puts him in the conversation.
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