Which LHW has the best chance of finishing Jon?

[Iron Nick]

A lot of people mentioning Rumble, but:

A. He's fucking huge and planning his return at HW. Don't think he ever fights at LHW again
B. He hasn't fought in 3 years, and to just jump back in after the layoff and still be at the top of your game at age 36 is pretty tough to do
C. DC has laid out the blueprint to beat him. A blueprint that Jon definitely has the ability to follow and excel at

With that said, Rumble can obviously sleep anyone in the world if a punch lands. But it seems pretty far fetched that he'd get the LHW crown at this point.

He's not nearly as huge as he used to be. Go to his instagram, he actually looks at least as "small" as during his light heavyweight days.

Agree with the other points though - but i'd definitely like to see that fight!

 

[Soul On Ice]

All have an equally shit chance

 

[Merlotte's]

no one knocks jones out. he ate a full power Uppercut from DC.

Wilder is Pretty much the only LHW who could knock him the fuck out.

Facts!

Back in the day Jones ate a flush high kick from Rashad too. Shin to the dome, not this toe slap stuff Reyes tries to pass off as a head kick.

 

[khabib time]

We all know now that it's gonna be near impossible to be given a decision win over Jon, unless it's a dominant performance where you win all 5 rounds (pretty much impossible to do against Jon). To dethrone him, you're gonna have to finish him, something that nobody's ever really been close to doing. Who has the best chance of stopping Jon and taking his LHW crown?

Dominick Reyes
Thiago Santos
Corey Anderson
Jan Blachowicz
Volkan Oezdemir
Aleksander Rakic
Johnny Walker

It's a pretty uninspiring list. Reyes and Santos obviously fought him to close decisions, but I feel like Jon took their best shots and wasn't phased by them at all. Jon has historically looked dominant in his rematches as well, so it's difficult to imagine them getting the finish next time, particularly Santos who is 36 years old and coming off major knee surgery.

Corey Anderson has looked real good lately, but he's not really a finisher, save for his last fight against Walker and Jon won't make the same mistakes that Johnny Walker did. Jan Blach has KO power but he's a journeyman and he's in tough against Anderson who beat him pretty handily last time.

Rakic and Walker are both really good prospects who theoretically have the length and power to get it done. But as we saw in both of their last fights, they're still a long way from being legitimate threats.

Will anyone in this crop be able to get it done? I'm leaning towards no.... at least not until Jon is a few years older and deeper into his physical decline.

I think the better question at this point is who doesn't have a chance to beat Jon. I think the fighters at LHW are obviously closing the gap and somebody soon will take his belt (I thought Reyes won). I think the guy who doesn't have a chance to beat Jon is.......

 

[Hoosier205]

The answer is simple. Who or what can beat Jon Jones?

...a drug test.

 

[felmmando]

Matt Hamill
View attachment 727715

This is hilarious!! <45>

 

[felmmando]

Reyes is not the man to do it. Bones now has what he needs to gameplan and come better.

How come he has it but Reyes doesn't?

 

[Prince Nephilim]

How come he has it but Reyes doesn't?

Reyes doesn't have a Greg Jackson

 

[BobbyBuds]

Father Time is the guy you're looking for

Correct.. And Reyes.. He landed some shots that a half-inch one way, or a fight or two in the future will rock John & have him stumbling. If he's stumbling & can't get him down, he is likely to get taken out.

 

[Mr.Maelstrom]

Correct.. And Reyes.. He landed some shots that a half-inch one way, or a fight or two in the future will rock John & have him stumbling. If he's stumbling & can't get him down, he is likely to get taken out.

Its inevitable. I'm a Roy Jones Jr. Fundamentalist, I know the crushing sads of watching goats fall off

 

[Al Stone]

How come he has it but Reyes doesn't?

Reyes is nowhere remotely close to the ring general Jones is. History will tell you he is a gameplan fighter. Reyes threw some things that caught him unexpectedly. Now they have what they need. Ask yourself this question honestly have you seen most of Reyes weapons utilized? Now have you seen all of Jones weapons utilized in their fight? You can argue Jones doesn't have them anymore. They're there. He probably just trained and game planned for where he thought Reyes was and got caught slipping. I was very unconfident going into this fight for Jones. Not nervous whatsoever for the rematch

 

[cheesus]

A lot of people mentioning Rumble, but:

A. He's fucking huge and planning his return at HW. Don't think he ever fights at LHW again
B. He hasn't fought in 3 years, and to just jump back in after the layoff and still be at the top of your game at age 36 is pretty tough to do
C. DC has laid out the blueprint to beat him. A blueprint that Jon definitely has the ability to follow and excel at

With that said, Rumble can obviously sleep anyone in the world if a punch lands. But it seems pretty far fetched that he'd get the LHW crown at this point.

I think you need to look at a recent photo of what Rumble looks like.

 

[laleggenda27]

In order to knock Jones out, you need to be able to close the distance and actually land a kill shot. Considering Reyes landed more significant strikes on Jones than Thiago, Smith, and Gus combined, I'll go with Reyes.

 

[Al Stone]

Its inevitable. I'm a Roy Jones Jr. Fundamentalist, I know the crushing sads of watching goats fall off

The thing is Jones has just enough youth to sputter out a little more if he took this as a lesson. If lucky 3 more solid years but not likely unless he gets back hungry and focused. Which will be hard. I bet he will look a little better with sparks of vintage Jones in the rematch. His ego is that big

 

[cheesus]

Rumble a few years ago would of had a great chance, unquestionably the greatest powerpuncher Jones would have faced and I don't see Jones having the same success as DC outwrestling Rumble. Still think Rumble is not dynamic enough with his striking to land cleanly on Jon and he doesn't have the length either, I think Jones would likely coast to a decision in that fight as well.

 

[TheToqueville]

the true lhw king

Reyes hows your acl doing?

 

[felmmando]

In order to knock Jones out, you need to be able to close the distance and actually land a kill shot. Considering Reyes landed more significant strikes on Jones than Thiago, Smith, and Gus combined, I'll go with Reyes.

He may have but he didn't hurt him nearly as much as Gustafsson did, leading me to wonder if he has that kill shot in him.

 

[Mr.Maelstrom]

The thing is Jones has just enough youth to sputter out a little more if he took this as a lesson. If lucky 3 more solid years but not likely unless he gets back hungry and focused. Which will be hard. I bet he will look a little better with sparks of vintage Jones in the rematch. His ego is that big

Agreed. His will is his biggest asset. Ppl say it's his reach or it's the average age of his of his opposition but that's mostly just sour grapes

 

[Al Stone]

Agreed. His will is his biggest asset. Ppl say it's his reach or it's the average age of his of his opposition but that's mostly just sour grapes

Also Reyes may no joke be the most big athletic dude Bones faced. Gus was big but not athletic. Reyes is a different kind of strong than DC. He wasn't lying.

 

[Mr.Maelstrom]

Also Reyes may no joke be the most big athletic dude Bones faced. Gus was big but not athletic. Reyes is a different kind of strong than DC. He wasn't lying.

I am on the precipice of going all in on Dom. He showed off the goods, and I firmly believe he'll be better served by winning definitively as opposed to catching the strap under dubious circumstances