Media Seems our boy Bones might be fighting at HW again after Stipe

[Only Here for Attachments]

Jones will never fight Aspinall IMO. He has made that pretty clear with this bullshit.

Uh huh.

 

[Tweak896]

I wouldn’t be surprised either, especially in the WWFC era. Still would be a bullshit move.

Agreed. But I guess its better to me because of Pereira's surge and pulling off what he has that makes me less angry than Colby who was sitting around with a win over a retired fighter. Aspinall deserves next Jones fight if this were a 100% sport.

 

[OldBoy91]

Jones will never fight Aspinall IMO. He has made that pretty clear with this bullshit.

What made that crystal clear to me was when he refused to do a staredown with Aspinall in Birmingham.

People have forgotten now, but he was the same way with Francis when there was still a slight possibility of them fighting each other. He never gave a direct answer, never straight out said he wanted that fight, and never did anything whatsoever to promote a future fight between them. Dude was radio silent for the most part.

Then, when Ngannou left the UFC and signed with PFL, all of a sudden Jon was happy to do not one, but multiple staredowns for photo ops with Francis over in Saudi. Every time they run into one another at events they do a staredown. Now that there is absolutely zero chance of him ever having to fight Ngannou, Jon is happy for the media to publish the pictures and speculate on what might have been.

 

[jx820]

How easy a fight is or isn't for a champion isn't particularly relevant IMO.

The fact that Jose Aldo was an easier fight for Conor than Chad Mendes was doesn't diminish the accomplishment of beating Aldo.

The fact that Jon Fitch got a lopsided beating from GSP doesn't diminish the fact that he earned the right to that beating.

I think the best argument for Tom over Alex is to put sensationalism, starpower, styles, size, etc... on the shelf and just stakeout a position of purity. Tom's earned his shot in the division, and champ or no, Alex is a LHW. That's the ONLY thing that matters.

I don't agree with that position, but I think it's the strongest argument.

 

[AmonTobin]

I call bullshit. Jones is just tweeting and baiting. If he wanted Aspinall he'd be gunning for him. All his chirping tells me is that he likes his chances with Pereira for obvious reasons. Never have I ever seen a belt holder duck a interim belt holder so hard.

 

[Bojka]

I'd only want to see him fight Pereira at lhw.

 

[Ares Black]

How easy a fight is or isn't for a champion isn't particularly relevant IMO.

It is relevant to Jones.

 

[Repusman]

He ducked Francis for years and once Francis left, he fought a fighter he knew he could take down in Gane. Now he wants to fight another fighter he knows he can take down instead of the well rounds Aspinal. Take away the cheating and the tailor made opponents and he loses for sure.

 

[LiQuiD42]

Jon is going to put Pereira on his back and choke him out faster than he did Gane.

 

[maximus__]

As I've said, this isn't about avoiding tests.

It's about business.

Tom is quite possibly one of the worst business moves Jon could ever make.

A lot of you guys don't seem to grasp that.

Plus, you think Tom is wa better than he actually is, so there's that as well.

But yeah, pereira Jones is a fight. I think he's gonna make it happen.

They made a HW champion interim title fight between the two top contenders after Jones got injured. Jones is effectively getting people to side with him ducking the rightful HW title challenger to fight a 205er. I personally like the Pereira fight much more, but Jones is actively ducking the rightful number 1 contender. Just strip him at this point and then he can fight whoever he wants for legacy.

 

[Khaosan]

Loooool he clearly wants the kickboxer at the end of his career and not the younger and more well rounded current interm HW champ.

 

[snaportap21]

Make u your mind Jon.... Is it money or legacy you are fighting for. Tom is definitely the harder fight. A natural heavy weight who's trained MMA all his career. Alex is a fantastic striker but is not a proven all rounder. Everybody already knows what your path to victory against Alex would be. How would you beat Tom?

Probably the same way Stuart Austin did. Tom showed poor TDD in that fight. He was hip tossed by a much smaller man and submitted later in the fight. Tom’s sub defense isn’t perfect.

 

[Iroh]

It is relevant to Jones.

Very nice av, buddeh!

 

[Ares Black]

Probably the same way Stuart Austin did. Tom showed poor TDD in that fight. He was hip tossed by a much smaller man and submitted later in the fight. Tom’s sub defense isn’t perfect.

That was Aspinall's fourth fight, nine years ago.

I think he may have improved slightly since then.

 

[AmonTobin]

Actual footage of Jon Jones when asked to defend against a legit #1 HW.

 

[AstralPanda]

DC was beaten twice by dusty Stipe, genius.
Jones ducked Ngannou for years and is now doing the same to Aspinal in favor of fighting another puffed up MW.
If you hug Jones’ nuts any tighter he’s going toa begin to transition

People who are consummate side pickers in a cult like way dont ever seem to grasp that you can say things favorably about someone without going to extremes.

Ultimately, you could also apply anything I've said universally to many stars, not just within combat sports but sports in general.

I don't think the idea that Jones is making decisions with this sort of business in mind is crazy. It's common sense.

People just project their own overly idealistic perceptions and ignore the fact that this is entertainment, which is how most of these athletes operate and make decisions based on.

When you're in the twilight of your career, especially when you've already fought all comers, you've earned the right to look for big fights and make money, as it's the time where it makes most sense to do so.

I understand the idea of wanting the champ to fight all comers, irregardless of business, but that's not how things things work. Ultimately we need to focus on how things are, rather than how we'd like them to be.

 

[GrantB13]

This is supposed to be a sport. Fight the fucking interim champion. Why should we care about YOUR dollar signs, YOUR legacy, or YOUR big picture? We're here for great fights, not to bolster your own lifestyle and then watch you fuck off into retirement. What's our incentive watching people take bigger fights FOR THEM? This goes for all fighters, not just Jones.

 

[Young Calf Kick]

The only sound picopussy is making is quacking noises.

 

[AstralPanda]

DC was beaten twice by dusty Stipe, genius.
Jones ducked Ngannou for years and is now doing the same to Aspinal in favor of fighting another puffed up MW.
If you hug Jones’ nuts any tighter he’s going to begin to transition.

Saying Jones ducked Ngannou is like saying Ngannou ducked when he left the UFC. Both of them made decisions based on business.

It's also like saying DJ ducked TJ when he was asking for more money.

This is prize fighting.

Moving up to fight for the HW title was something he took time to prepare for. How do you duck something you've been gaining weight to prepare for? Someone who he legitimately called out, long before anyone even thought of the match up as well.

Jones was a horrible match-up for Ngannou. One of the worst. Anyone who unquestionably believes he gets smoked, doesn't know shit about mma. Most fighters thought Jones beats him, yet a legion of fans are confident that he was terrified.

It doesn't take a nuthugger to state the obvious. Some of you guys are just very delusional and obviously forming these opinions in emotion.

According to Chael, someone who genuinely hates Jon and will never pass up an opportunity to talk bad about him, said Jones agreed to fight 3 different fighters.

Ngannou, Gane and Pavlovic( the official backup for the fight)

Based on the evidence, every indication was that Jones had come to an agreement long before Ngannou officially left. If Ngannou stayed with the ufc, that fight would've happened. It's really that simple.

But again, people just see what they want to see, especially with polarizing figures. There's an inability to separate the art from the artist, so people just frame things in whatever way will frame these figures in the worst way possible, rather than what is objectively true.

Also, DC was long past his prime when he fought Stipe. Even he said there's no way he loses that fight, if he's at his best.

DC is legitimately one of the best of all time and the fact that he gets so little respect is a testament to how little some of you seem to understand about the sport.

 

[jx820]

It is relevant to Jones.

Yeah. Of course. I'll take an easier job for more prestige and money too. He's not an idiot.

From a fan perspective if a guy has "earned it" (to the extent that means anything) it shouldn't matter if he's a favorable or unfavorable match up.