Jon Jones, Superhuman

By Eric Kamander

When we talk about The Potential of Jon Jones, is it fair to say this guy is unstoppable? When has anyone just walked through his opponents, including a champion like Shogun, and shut them all down so decisively? However, many fans will quickly point to previous instances where a fighter thought to be unstoppable was knocked off an undeserved pedestal, with Lyoto Machida and Brock Lesnar being two such examples.

Yet Jones really makes excellent use of his natural gifts in a way we’ve never seen before. We’ve often seen fighters look like superstars when they’re facing inferior competition, or an opponent whose inactivity allows them to really put their games on display. But Jones’ reach, combined with his diverse and aggressive style, allows him to make quality opposition look like they have no business being in the cage with him. Would Jones be able to land those spinning elbows if his arms weren’t longer than any other UFC fighter, heavyweights included? Against Shogun, who is known for knees in the clinch, Jones was able to bring his hips back so far that he could land his knees, while Shogun just couldn’t reach his body. If Jones wants to keep you at a distance he can. We saw him constantly land sidekicks to Shogun’s knee, and follow up with punches like he was fighting a little kid that just couldn’t reach him.

And if you can manage to close the distance, then what? Jones has proven that he can use his length and leverage to toss fighters with much greater wrestling credentials. And once Jones gets on top, his length allows him to hold his opponents down in ways that other fighters simply can’t. The technique Jones used to simultaneously pin Shogun’s hips and neck would not be possible without the length advantage he enjoys. Furthermore, when Jones is on top he can really do damage. Jones has proved quite adept at landing effective punches even while in guard, because of his reach. And getting wrist control on Jones just allows him to negate your defense while he lands elbows.

But does that mean he’s unbeatable? It’s hard to say anyone is unbeatable, but what will be the strategy, or skill set required to beat him?

Many people thought Shogun’s active guard would have been able to capitalize on holes in Jones’ Jiu-Jitsu. Will someone with superior wrestling be able to take him down and hold him there? Ryan Bader didn’t fare too well; I doubt someone like Randy Couture, Rashad Evans, or even Phil Davis would do much better. Shogun wasn’t able to get off any leg kick strategy because his kicks had less reach than Jones’ punches — let alone Jones’ own kicks. I don’t see Rashad being able to land the overhand like he did against Chuck Liddell. Would someone like Machida be elusive enough to get in on Jones? Even though I think he has the best chance of anyone, I highly doubt it. What am I missing?

Until you can answer that question, you can talk about how everyone gets beat eventually all you want, but I’m putting Jon Jones up on a pedestal and proclaiming this the “Bones Jones Era,” because I’m an MMA fan and that’s what we do. You can call it premature, but I have every reason to believe that the reign of Jon Jones will only prove that we weren’t enthusiastic enough about him. The sky truly is the limit, and as his star continues to rise, we should just sit back and enjoy the ride.