The reaction to sports personalities is never going to be an exact science. Look at every realm of professional play and you will find individuals that fans will love to hate, as well as those that garner love no matter where they go or what they do. Combat sports are no different, especially within mixed martial arts, where fans have an almost uncanny interaction with the stars they enjoy watching. One individual has become quite the conundrum, and that is the UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
At 24 years of age, Jon Jones is still a very young man in a sport that is usually dominated by individuals older and more experienced than him. With a 15-1 record, Jones has been considered a phenom in the sport since his 2009 bout against Stephan Bonnar, in which he put on a show with spinning back elbows and German suplexes. A coming out show if there ever was one, from that point on everyone expected Jones to become a star, not only within mixed martial arts, but potentially as a mainstream superstar. He went from undercard status to loved champion in a little more than two years. The UFC had their star that the fans love to build up to the endless opportunities that would be to come. However, that would not last long.
Rumblings began around the reality of Jones’s persona. Some individuals began to question if he was really the humble, contrite individual that was being reported to us through the UFC’s media vessels. Jones didn’t help himself as he started completing more media engagements, and fans’ perception of Jones began to change. Words such as “conceited” and “arrogant” began to seep in as adjectives when describing the fighter who was hopefully going to be one of the backs needed to carry mixed martial arts into the mainstream.
Jones stands poised to defend his title at UFC 145 against his former friend and training partner Rashad Evans, another individual who was typecast as conceited during his time on The Ultimate Fighter. Dialogue around the perception of Jones has drastically changed if you look at him now and when he won the belt a little over a year ago. Instead of being the classic fan favorite, many individuals root against him, not to see the other fighter win, but simply wanting Jones to lose. Fight fans point towards his personality seeming “fake,” or that he is trying to be something that he isn’t. In less than a year, he has fallen from the good graces of those paying for the fights, and while this has not deterred his “position” in the organization, it is very apparent that “Bones” is not as loved as he once was.
What happened? Was it the way that Jones often speaks in a “Manifest Destiny” tone when talking about his position in the UFC’s light heavyweight division? Is this why people consider him arrogant or conceited? How about how uncomfortable he seems in front of the camera at times? No matter what situation fans will point towards, Jones and his handlers should have one reaction towards the whole ordeal.
Embrace it. Flat out. Jones is a professional athlete and his job is and will always be to go into his arena of play and win. So far, Jones has done a fantastic job of doing just that. He’s good at what he does, and has done a not so great job relaying that to the fans when asked. People have scoffed at his comments of wanting to “do things better than Muhammad Ali,” when he was questioned about the comparison between himself and the sports icon. Jones is at the point where nearly everything that he will and can do will garner some type of scorn from fight consumers, so my suggestion is to fully embrace it.
I can point towards other individuals who embraced the “heel” aspect of mixed martial arts and have enjoyed success as that role has grown and almost shifted. Chael Sonnen and Josh Barnett are two fighters that are consistently ranked near the top of their divisions. They both share the similar distinction of having their careers tainted by suspensions due to performance enhancing drugs. However, both have risen to near superstardom as they have taken on these personas that played into the hate that fans would spill their way. What’s even more impressive is the way that fans have begun to embrace these individuals in an almost cult like fashion. Both individuals have been able to parlay their actions into high profile fights and that equates to high paydays, which is always the bottom line when it comes to professional sports.
While I’m not saying Jones should start cutting professional wrestling promos after winning bouts, he should really embrace the way the fans perceive him and not go out of his way to convert them into fans. If they hate you, let them hate you. Jones is in a great position because he continues to put on the exciting fights that fans will pay to see either way. Unlike the criticism that follows Ben Askren, Jones is giving mainstream fight fans what they want to see against tough competition each and every time out.
No matter what you do — no matter what you say or how often you smile — sports fans will always find a reason to dislike you. Jon Jones shot to the top of mixed martial arts, and now he is facing the same exact hate that has befallen others. Instead of trying to erase the stigma that comes with it, he should welcome it. And with it welcome the bigger paydays and opportunities that will open up down the line.
I don't know that I agree. While I think Jones is unstoppable at LHW, I'm not a fan of his whole “Manifest Destiny” personae. But if Jones doesn't want to be a heel, why should he try and play that role. Maybe he flip flops a bit and is trying to find his identity. Or maybe he knows exactly who he is, and fans just don't understand him. But being polarizing the way he is certainly doesn't seem to be hurting his popularity.
You cant hide true character, I Understand the heat of the Moment, What turn me away from The Jon Jones Band Wagon… Was the Lyoto Machida Win…. Dropping a unconscious opponent…. Look at Chris Weidman vs Tom Lawlor … Sportsmanship, True concern for your opponent cant be faked! If Jon was the humble, Nice GUY he claims? Where was the Nice Guy? Then?
Rashad didn't do anything to Hurt Jones… Jones hurts Jones!
I'm also a big Machida fan, but I think that just because Jones dropped Machida, that doesn't mean he isn't a nice guy. I think the issue whether or not Jones is faking, and maybe the case is that he's not always who he wants to be, but isn't that normal? Don't many of us strive to be nicer, kinder, more compassionate? If we slip, are we faking?
Also, regarding Evans, who I'm also a big fan of, I can't help but think that ultimately, when Jones won the title, it was really Evans place to say "I won't fight Jones" as Jones, being the champion, is somewhat obligated to fight whoever the UFC matches him against.
I think that the statement that Jon Jones needs to embrace some kind of "heel" role is puzzling. Jones is just not a gifted talker, and rubs people the wrong way when he tries to say all the "right things." What makes you think that he would immediately become an expert trash talker like Chael Sonnen just because he isn't trying to say "heelish" things? What's to stop those lines from seeming forced, fake, and ill-fitting like you think his current persona is.
I think one major issue is that because he can't articulate the depth and the nuances of his character like a Rashad Evans can, those perceived inconsistencies seem more stark. He tries to carry himself like George St. Pierre, but shows flashes of Brock Lesnar. He's all smiles and sportsmanship, but he fights with malice and bad intentions. In the cage, he's violent, and has never truly explained where that violence comes from, and why he relishes in it so much. This coldness, this detachment from the in-cage beast that he turns into, is hard to reconcile, so we wonder whether he has something to hide, be it cockiness or otherwise.
I think that there are two directions that Jones can go in: The first is to get better about explaining how he can "flip a switch" and go into IDGAF mode. The second is to alter his fighting style. He can look like he's having fun out there, kinda like Urijah Faber, or fight with machine/businesslike efficiency, kinda like GSP. Both men are consummate professionals and sportsmen, and both are well-respected by nearly all fans. Both are simple enough to emulate, especially within the persona that Jones already has.
Because at the end of the day, Zuffa wants Jones to be the face of the sport, and ambassador for the UFC in the US and worldwide. If he comes off as disingenuous, so will the sport in a way. If he fronts like a sportsman and professional, but is really a mean-spirited, self-involved brute, that will undermine the image of the UFC, and his role as company's signature star.
I disagree. I don't think he needs to reconcile or change anything. Right now he's polarizing. He's an enigma. And love him or hate him, people are talking about him. I don't see any reason he can't just keep doing what he's doing.