Tonight in the main event of UFC 165, two of the UFC’s most physically-gifted fighters square off, as UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones faces Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson with the title on the line. This piece will break down both fighters, as well as where the fight will likely be won and lost.
Alexander Gustafsson
Gustaffson, a Sweden native, has been a fan favorite since he debuted in Manchester, England at UFC 105 against Jared Hamman. On that night, Gustaffson justified the hype that he had amassed as he bulldozed all comers on the European fight scene when he knocked out Hamman in under a minute. Following his successful debut, the Swede was given the unenviable task of facing wrestling phenom Phil Davis at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi, but unfortunately for Gustafsson, he couldn’t cope with the grappling of “Mr. Wonderful,” and lost via first-round submission.
Following “The Mauler’s” fight with Phil Davis, Davis offered the Swede the opportunity to join him as a training partner at Alliance in California. Gustaffson jumped at the opportunity, and in hindsight, his loss to Davis might have been the best thing that ever happened to him.
In his first two fights after beginning to train with Alliance, Gustaffson showed a marked improvement in his grappling. In his bout with Cyrille Diabate, he showed off his striking before dominating on the canvas and scoring a rear naked choke, and then against James Te Huna he earned his second rear naked choke finish in a row.
His coming out party, however, was against Matt Hamill. The one previous time he faced a wrestler he was beaten, but in his bout at UFC 133 with Hamill, he showed how improved his defensive grappling was, and most importantly he showed that his striking skills hadn’t deteriorated, even with a new found focus on grappling. After a TKO win over the durable Hamill, he then faced another wrestler, Vladimir Matyushenko. This time Gustafsson took even less time to finish his foe, as he put “The Janitor” away with strikes within a round.
In his most recent two bouts Gustafsson has proved he is main event caliber, first beating Thiago Silva in his native Sweden in headlining bout of UFC on Fuel TV 2, and most recently he beat “Shogun” Rua in the co-main event of UFC on Fox 5.
Skillswise, Gustafsson’s boxing is among the most technical in the division. His defensive wrestling, which was once his main weakness, is now his strong point, and if the fight does hit the canvas, he is always dangerous from a submission standpoint.
The key to victory for Gustafsson is to use his superior technical boxing to get in close to Jones and hurt his body early, while trying to take the champ into later rounds.
Jon Jones
Jones is a longtime member of the famous Jackson/Winklejohn academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but prior to relocating to Albuquerque, Jones fought out of the BombSquad in New York, and it was through his training with them that he became a UFC fighter.
Prior to becoming a mixed martial artist, Jon Jones was a successful college wrestler, a JUCO champion. But once Jones decided MMA was his passion, he wasted no time in his ascent to the UFC; he turned pro on April 12, 2008, and by August 9th of the same year he was a UFC fighter. In Jones’ short career outside of the UFC, he painted a path of violence which included five knockouts and one submission.
“Bones” began his UFC career with a bout against Brazilian Andre Gusmao. Immediately fight fans were enamored with Jones’ exciting style and dominant performance en route to a decision victory. From day one of his UFC career he was a fan favorite.
Following wins against UFC Hall of Famer Stephan Bonnar and Jake O’Brien, Jones was pit against Matt Hamill, and even though he dominated, he was disqualified for an illegal elbow. This one loss is the only tarnish on Bones’ career, as following that “loss” he’s been on a nine-fight win streak, which includes his title win against Shogun at UFC 128.
The keys to victory for Jones are to use his reach and far superior wrestling and top game against the comparatively inexperienced Gustaffson.
The Verdict
I am of the belief that Jon Jones is the Michael Jordan of our sport — he’s too fast, too strong, and too technical. He will dominate and win by any means he chooses.
• Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson – UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
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UFC 165: Jones vs. Gustafsson is due to take place on September 21, 2013 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
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