The month of April has been an extremely busy one in the world of mixed martial arts. Every weekend has featured some MMA action, whether in the UFC, Bellator, or some other organization somewhere in the world. However, the Ultimate Fighting Championship always garners the most attention, and of its four events this month, UFC 172 stands out as the most important one, not just for the organization, but for its light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones.
One of the most important storylines so far in 2014 has been the need for the UFC to establish stars to drive its business. UFC President Dana White has suggested that UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey should be considered the biggest star on the roster, an argument that seems to have hit a sore spot for Jones. He believes that the UFC is going out of its way to push her to the forefront. However, the fact remains that his abilities in the Octagon have not translated into him becoming the major star that he should be.
Jon Jones has the “it” factor that should translate into him becoming a sports star that crosses over into mainstream entertainment. He’s considered more “entertainment attractive” than fighters such as Randy Couture or Chuck Liddell, both of whom have been featured in television and movies. He’s more outspoken than Georges St. Pierre, who had a role in what might end up being the biggest movie of 2014, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. According to Jones’ agent Malki Kawa, there have been opportunities, but the management team did not feel that the time was right, given Jones’ fighting schedule. However, at some point Jones will need to take advantage of these opportunities outside of the Octagon while they remain available, particularly given his less than stellar performance as a pay-per-view draw within the Octagon.
Since becoming the champion at 205 pounds a little more than four years ago, the MMA world has been waiting for Jones to have that breakthrough star-making moment. However, to date, his highest-selling PPV has been UFC 145, where he faced his former friend and teammate Rashad Evans, a main event that many believe Evans did most of the heavy lifting for when it came to promoting. Jones almost backed his way into another major opportunity, when on the heels of the UFC 151 cancellation in 2012, Chael Sonnen, one of the best fight promoters in the sport, talked his way into not only a fight against Jones, but a whole season of The Ultimate Fighter in 2013. Still, “Bones” didn’t come out of that season any more of a star than he went into it, which could only be described as a major disappointment.
The aftermath of Jones’ toughest challenge to date at UFC 165 was another point when Jones could have started to approach crossover sports appeal. The ball was dropped, this time by the UFC, when the organization failed to grant an immediate rematch to Alexander Gustaffson to capitalize on the fight that many considered to be 2013’s “Fight of the Year.” Now, the UFC decisionmakers have rolled the dice, in hopes that Jones can defeat Glover Teixeira, and give them “just cause” to set up the rematch between Jones and Gustafsson sometime in 2014. That fight is so important that they have placed the two fighters on the cover of the highly-anticipated EA Sports UFC video game, which is due to be released in June. Obviously, a rematch announcement timed to coincide with the game’s release would provide both fighters with tremendous exposure, while creating quite a bit of synergy with the UFC’s inaugural offering on next-generation consoles.
That’s why the April 26 title defense is more important for Jon Jones than many observers may initially realize. Not only is he facing a dangerous veteran with many different weapons at his disposal, but he’s fighting for the chance to make 2014 — when the UFC needs him the most — his breakthrough year as a sports star. The man who once stated that his rise to MMA prominence was “destiny” now has to take it into his own hands if he’s going to seize that destiny, and become the star that the mixed martial arts world once expected.
• Jon Jones vs. Glover Teixeira
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UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira is due to take place on April 26, 2014 at Baltimore Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 172 will be.
