RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesJon
Jones remains highly confident in his ability.
In a recent interview, the former
Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight and light
heavyweight titleholder weighed in on how he believes a fight
against fellow former two-division king Alex
Pereira and a wrestling match against longtime rival Daniel
Cormier would unfold, backing himself in both scenarios. Jon Jones explains why he sees grappling as the deciding factor
in a hypothetical fight with Alex Pereira
Jones and Pereira were seemingly on a collision course when the
latter announced his move up to heavyweight for
UFC Freedom 250 . However, with Jones’ ongoing stalemate with
the UFC regarding his future, a fight against “Poatan” has fallen
through.
Nevertheless, Jones cites size as a key factor at heavyweight,
claiming his former opponents Stipe
Miocic and Ciryl Gane
are bigger than Pereira, who previously competed at 185 pounds.
“I watched Pereira train,” Jones said in an interview with AFL
Global. “I see his level of wrestling and it's way behind. I feel
as if Stipe Miocic is a true heavyweight. He's a big, big boy.
Ciryl Gane, when you see him in person, he's a big, big boy. Alex
Pereira is not a big, big boy. He's a lean guy. I think right now
he weighs maybe 250.”
Jones believes his size and grappling would have overwhelmed
Pereira, predicting a submission win had they collided inside the
Octagon.
“I feel as if my physical strength would have been too much for
him,” Jones said. “I felt as if the moment I would have gotten him
to the ground, my submissions would have come pretty quickly. I
mean, everyone knows that. I think that's the clearest path to
victory for me against Alex Pereira. But we're not fighting. I am a
fan of him. I support him, and I want to see him do well.”
“Bones” also discussed his approach towards a potential wrestling
match with Cormier, who he’s already shared the cage with
twice.
“I think I would have beat D.C. in a wrestling match,” Jones said.
“It wouldn't be easy, but I think I would beat him in wrestling. I
hear that he has problems with his back, so my strategy would be to
just try to wear on him. Not shoot, not go for the takedown, but
just hand fight, hand fight, hand fight and see if I could wear on
that back.”
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