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[Cat--Smasher]

Heavyweight Could Be Calling UFC Champ Jon Jones as Soon as 2013 or 2014

“I’ve put thought into it and, like I said, not to be cliché, but Dan Henderson is my main priority and focus, but I have a lot of years left in fighting. Coming up to heavyweight is something I’d like to do maybe in the next two or three years,” Jones said in a recent Fuel TV interview.

“2013 or 2014; it would be cool.”

Jones has long hinted at a move to heavyweight and at 25 years of age, he’s still growing into his long six-foot-four-inch frame. With two brothers already playing defensive end in the NFL, the Jones family is no stranger to packing on size to go along with height.

UFC Champ Jon Jones Looks to Move to Heavyweight As Soon As 2013 or 2014 | MMAWeekly.com



UFC champ Jones: I haven't cleaned out the division, but Sonnen 'is a joke'

http://mmajunkie.com/news/30278/ufc-...ie.com+Feed%29

"Styles make these matchups," Jones told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) when asked who might be left for him after Henderson. "Phil Davis lost to Rashad [Evans], and I beat Rashad. But that doesn't mean Phil Davis won't give me the fight of my life. Or [Alexander] Gustafsson. He's tall, I'm tall, and he's got long arms. Maybe that would be interesting to see. Or Glover Teixiera. He hits hard. Maybe that would be interesting. Styles make matchups. There's guys in my gym right now that aren't in the UFC that make me sweat and bleed. So you can't say I've cleaned out the division – because I haven't. I simply haven't."

You'll notice that, in Jones' list of interesting potential title challengers, two names are conspicuously absent. The first is Lyoto Machida, who's already been promised a fight with the winner of the Jones-Henderson scrap despite the fact that Jones choked him unconscious less than a year ago. The second is brand new light heavyweight Chael Sonnen, who wasted no time trying to drum up a rivalry with Jones this past week after announcing that he was moving up from middleweight.

Neither fight is of particular interest to Jones, he explained, though for two very different reasons. For starters, take Machida, who Jones described as both a "great challenge" and a "tricky puzzle" from a pure martial arts perspective.

"But as a businessman, the [fight against Machida at UFC 140] had the lowest pay-per-view sales of all the fights I had in 2011," Jones said. "So it's just like, I don't see why it would benefit me to fight him again. ... I have nothing to gain there. I beat him once, and it was the lowest pay-per-view numbers I had the whole year. So why would I fight someone that no one really wants to see when there's all these other guys working their hearts out to get a chance at me? Why do they get skipped [by] a guy who lost already?"

You have to admit that there is a certain unassailable logic at work here. If the goal of a champion is to defend his belt against the challengers fans want to see him fight – and if fans vote with their wallets – then Machida is a bad choice. He also represents a test that Jones passed with flying colors back in December. Machida may have won a single round against Jones, but how motivating do we really expect that to be for one of the UFC's most dominant champs? For Jones, fighting Machida again is like going back to take the SAT after getting a nearly perfect score the first time. There might be some room for improvement, but not much.

On the flip side, if it's fan interest Jones is after, you might think he could do a lot worse than Sonnen. The former middleweight contender has yet to win a fight in the UFC at light heavyweight, but at least he knows how to sell a fight. He's already begun laying the groundwork in his new weight class while taking potshots at Jones on a recent episode of "UFC Tonight" and drawing the champion's ire on Twitter as a result.

But no, that fight isn't happening either, according to Jones.

"That guy is a joke," he said of Sonnen, adding that, regardless of how it may have appeared, he didn't feel he'd been baited into a war of words when he responded on Twitter. "It's not getting baited if you know what you're up against. My emotions weren't involved in that."

And yet, the more Jones talks about Sonnen and what he stands for, the harder that is to believe. To hear Jones tell it, Sonnen is "a bully," and there are few things the champion despises more. He insists that "bullying has taken over America, and it's terrible for people." Just look at Sonnen's pre-fight rants about Anderson Silva and Brazilians in general, Jones said.

"He mentions Brazilian kids playing with dirt while American kids play with normal toys," Jones said. "He talks about people's parents and families and wives. He's a bona fide bully. ... The Brazilian thing, I lost a lot of respect for him. What he said was racist. It was disrespectful and unacceptable. I have a strong stance on this because I hate what he's doing. You can't just insult a whole country like that. ... It was terrible. As Americans, we should have been embarrassed by what he did."

But if Jones is so outraged by Sonnen's schtick, one wonders, why then is he so opposed to the idea of fighting him? Wouldn't the best response to a bully be a spinning back elbow to the skull?

Normally, maybe. But in this instance, it would be exactly what Sonnen's after, and Jones knows it. Sonnen likely craves not only the attention of a high-profile feud, however contrived it might be, but also the money that would accompany a title fight. That is, if he could talk his way into one, which is where Jones comes in, or at least hopes to.

"It's what he wants, but I'm not going to allow him to get a title fight from talking," Jones said. "It's not going to happen. Chael Sonnen will not get a title fight from using his mouth. I will make it very clear to everyone that there's people who are way more deserving of a shot. If he wants to come into the [light-heavyweight division], I'd consider him Top 15 among light heavyweights. Let's see what he'll do against a wrestler like Phil Davis. Let's see what he'd do against a wrestler like Rashad or a striker like Lyoto Machida. ... The light-heavyweight division is a completely different beast. I won't allow him to just jump the rankings with his mouth. It's not going to happen."

[Luc1an]

Jones vs Overeem would be siiiick!

[Y2JUBAE]

Not quite a fan of the man, but I am definitely a fan of the talent.

[FedortheCan]

Im a fan of the man... not a fan of the possible move. Too many good LHW fighters for him just to leave the division and move up

[Cat--Smasher]

Originally Posted by FedortheCan

Im a fan of the man... not a fan of the possible move. Too many good LHW fighters for him just to leave the division and move up

Who is left for him to prove himself against?

Glover
Goose
Mousasi

Jones will beat them all.

If Jones walks through Hendo and Machida (again)... time to move up Bones.

[grambino]

Originally Posted by Cat--Smasher

Who is left for him to prove himself against?

Glover
Goose
Mousasi

Jones will beat them all.

If Jones walks through Hendo and Machida (again)... time to move up Bones.

He'll need to evaluate the situation with respect to endorsements. The longer he can stay at LHW the better for him. He won't be the HW champion any time soon. I don't believe he'd be a sure bet against anyone in the top 5 or maybe top 10. Every advantage he employs currently will be negated. He's not an elite striker and won't have a strength advantage anywhere. He also isn't a big puncher but will be facing many. He's the darling of LHW, but can't see many companies rushing to endorse the 4th or 5th best fighter in a weight class.

[TBEAR]

Originally Posted by Cat--Smasher

Who is left for him to prove himself against?


If Jones walks through Hendo and Machida (again)... time to move up Bones.

Jones is a big dude, but at HW (besides reach) he will give up size and strength. He will need to pack on like 40 lbs of soild muscle to deal with the likes of Cain (240-250) and JDS (240-250 of ripped muscle). Thats is for those 2 HW, hell thier are guys in the HW division that on fight day are like 275-280.

Jones is talented, but right now at LHW, he has an advanatge over most...he gives that up IF he goes up to HW

[captonion]

Originally Posted by FedortheCan

Im a fan of the man... not a fan of the possible move. Too many good LHW fighters for him just to leave the division and move up

It's a move that he will have to make If he still wants to fight.He is already cutting 25-30lbs,,This is gonna get harder as he fills out...HW will be the only choice!

[captonion]

Originally Posted by FedortheCan

Im a fan of the man... not a fan of the possible move. Too many good LHW fighters for him just to leave the division and move up

It's a move that he will have to make If he still wants to fight.He is already cutting 25-30lbs,,This is gonna get harder as he fills out aing gains more weight...HW will be the only choice!

[FedortheCan]

Originally Posted by Cat--Smasher

Who is left for him to prove himself against?

Glover
Goose
Mousasi

Jones will beat them all.

If Jones walks through Hendo and Machida (again)... time to move up Bones.

Those are the exact 3 I was thinking of. Each of those 3 all have something they can bring to the fight that could give Jones problems. I knows Jones would be favored agains all 3.... but I wouldnt be shocked if any of those 3 beat him.