Jones keeps talking about how Gane's only real strength is footwork.

[don't ask]

I hope Gane slob drops him into the dark ether.

I like this.

 

[Dacha]

If Jon does lot of kicks, i wouldn't be surprised if Gane takes him down.

Not sure if any fighter will try to close the distance without causing obvious damage from the outside. Which just won't happen for Jon imo.

 

[Tchernobog]

And eye pokes, so Gane can't see where he's moving.

 

[Human Bass]

Gane has basically the same reach, Jones just cant play the safe long distance game, Gane is much longer than Marreta, Reyes, DC.

 

[Eric Silva 2.0]

Jones standup is excellent, he might not have power but he's defensively sound and has chosen to stand with strikers to prove a point. I think as a plan B he could stand with Gane assuming he's not blown away by his power, but Gane isn't really know to be a powerful guy. I could see Jones outpointing in a gritty standup war. Gane is technical for a HW, but lets not forget how good Jones standup is. Even with that, he has his wrestling which is Gane's weakness and that's Jones A game.

"Jones standup is excellent."
No it isn't. He has a good kicking game and average boxing. He will lose badly if this is a standup fight. I expect Jon to try to take Gane down or mix in the threat of a takedown to keep Cyril confused during the fight. Jon's strength is his diversity, creativity, and fight IQ. This fight won't be competitive if it's standing and Jon's takedown threat isn't there. He just isn't in the same league as Gane on the feet.

 

[Still Holdin]

Either Jones gets him down or ties him up for 5 or Gane tags him up=

 

[Tweak896]

What people forget is that Jones' striking is only good when people freeze up in front of him, especially when he out-reaches them by a foot. That's not going to happen in this fight. If Jones has to stand up with Gane, he will be humiliated. Gane's speed, footwork, and hand speed are all way to much for Jon. He needs to throw a wet blanket over him for 5 rounds and hope he gets 3 of them.

That's a good point, Jones reach plus outstretched fingers limits guys coming in on him when he has that advantage. Oblique kicks as well. Gane has similar reach so punching won't be as effective, but possibly the oblique kicks.

 

[SkinnyClaw]

Jones biggest strength is destroying footwork with his kicks. The way he battered Anthony Smith's legs was beautiful. How many kicks has Ciryl had thrown at him in his whole MMA career, probably less than 10

 

[scytheavatar]

Jones biggest strength is destroying footwork with his kicks. The way he battered Anthony Smith's legs was beautiful. How many kicks has Ciryl had thrown at him in his whole MMA career, probably less than 10

Did you watch the Gane vs Volkov fight? Gane ate lots of leg kicks but he still won because Volkov couldn't handle his hand speed. He made Volkov afraid to engage in the kicking game with him. And we saw how Santos and Reyes's boxing was able to turn Jones into a very different fighter.

 

[SkinnyClaw]

Did you watch the Gane vs Volkov fight? Gane ate lots of leg kicks but he still won because Volkov couldn't handle his hand speed. He made Volkov afraid to engage in the kicking game with him. And we saw how Santos and Reyes's boxing was able to turn Jones into a very different fighter.

I watched it recently, it slipped my mind. I think Jon is a far more effective kicker than Volkov though. The thing with Ciryl is he does not press forward and doesn't throw as aggressively as the guys Jon struggled with, he is very nonchalant and happy to stand in front of guys and throw out jabs, perfect guy to have his knees kicked in, if Jon will use it

 

[ripsta619]

And eyepokes! Try dancing around when you can't see shit.

And he may go super vet and target Cyril's hand if he has to in order to win.

Take a page out of Hammill's book and target Gane's hand with his face?

 

[fightfan70]

If he is standing w Cyril in later rounds its because he has no choice but to.

that is the current thought process, and i am inclined to agree, but is not necessarily true.

jones very well may find himself winning the striking battle. gane might be a great kickboxer,

but that takedown threat changes even the best strikers game.

 

[fightfan70]

still surprises me the people that are sleeping on the guy who hasn't lost a title fight in over a decade.

how could you pick the guy that got wrestle fucked by a boxer?

i don't know, hope its a good fight. i wouldn't put money on it. and if i did it would be on jj

 

[abject]

He'll def take him down and probably early. He's too smart in ring not to do so. But I think he will probably stand with Ciryl in later rounds if he can't get him out of there early. Both because wrestling a heavyweight is tiring and because of his ego.

Like he did with reyes and santos. wait......

 

[don't ask]

Jones biggest strength is destroying footwork with his kicks. The way he battered Anthony Smith's legs was beautiful. How many kicks has Ciryl had thrown at him in his whole MMA career, probably less than 10

Jon borrowed his knee kicks from Savate. Gane has definitely encountered them before.

 

[don't ask]

still surprises me the people that are sleeping on the guy who hasn't lost a title fight in over a decade.

Probably because they're taking more information into account.

 

[kingmob6]

Jones just needs to add Usman's toe stumps to his arsenal and he would be deadly. Eye pokes, obliques and toe stumps...oh mama.

 

[HaulParris]

Im just sayin dont play the kickin game w a dude who is a better kicker than you.

This is the MMA version of this boxing wisdom:

 

[CPH]

Gane is not especially vulnerable to the oblique kick. He moves well laterally and doesn't often employ a very low, front foot-heavy stance.

 

[ChimRichalds]

I don't believe Jones will have much success shooting traditional doubles and singles against Gane, plus it'll be more taxing on his cardio imo. The smarter move would be going for the clinch with body locks and trips (which Jon is very good at as well).

Absolutely. That's where the fight will be decided IMO. If Gane can't deny Jones' clinch attempts then it becomes Jons fight in a hurry.

I think Gane is mobile enough to stay at range though, and strong enough to shuck Jones off if he succeeds in closing the distance.