Embracing The Real Jon Jones
Jon Jones finally did it. At UFC 182, Jon Jones finally became the man that he’s been all along and the man that I’ve wanted him to be for quite some time.
Let’s not kid ourselves, the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion has always been a bit of a jerk. Whether he’s refusing to sign replica titles or cruising around with ladies of the night, Jones has seemingly never cared about the public's perception of him. Except that he has. He’s always tried to be the nice, humble Christian in front of the camera. He’s always tried to “get some fans” when the red light is on. And for the most part, he’s always failed.
Finally, in the lead up to UFC 182, Jones stopped trying to appease the fans and started being himself. The brawl with Daniel Cormier and subsequent hot mic video that was “leaked” was the start of the real Jon Jones. Instead of “being the bigger man” and backing away when Cormier get in his face, he threw a punch and then played to the crowd. Jones initiated the back-and-forth on the hot mic, engaging Cormier by asking, “hey pussy are you still there?” before admitting that he’s a professional when called out by Cormier for being fake on screen.
He took things a step further at the actual event. Following a hard fought, but never in doubt, victory over Cormier, Jones started celebrating a bit early as the Olympic wrestler tried for a takedown. When Cormier let up despite time being left on the clock, Jones snuck in a couple of extra punches. Cormier took exception to this, I guess feeling that there was a mutual agreement that the fight was over despite the bell not sounding, and tried to return fire after the bell. Jones backed away and gave Cormier the ol’ Degeneration-X crotch chop, which was a nice change of pace from the usual middle fingers that we’re accustomed to seeing in MMA.
“Bones” saved his best for last. At the post-fight press conference, standing just a few feet away from an emotional and humbled Daniel Cormier, Jones showed no sympathy. When asked if his opinion on Cormier had changed following the bout given how respectful and humble the challenger was, Jones responded, “Not really. I know if he would’ve won, he would be up here talking all types of trash. I don’t feel sorry for him. This is combat.”
Jones embracing his cocky prick side is only going to make him more money in the long run.
There’s no denying the fact that Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the top draw on PPV. He does around one million PPV buys, if not more, on any given Saturday against any given opponent. Jones has struggled to hit 500,000 PPV buys on a consistent basis thanks in large part to false marketing.
The UFC wanted to sell him as a clean cut highly skilled fighter, which was only half true. Then they blamed him for having to cancel a PPV even though the blame should’ve been placed on more than one party. Then they wanted to sell him as the #1 Pound-For-Pound Fighter in the world while also selling five other guys as the top P4P fighter. There was something about his reach thrown in there as well. Now the UFC doesn’t need to sell Jones, just let Jones sell himself the same way Mayweather sells himself.
Jon Jones is a killer. A man on a different level than anyone else in the sport right now. He mentioned in the post-fight press conference that he felt like he absorbed Daniel Cormier’s skills just by watching so much tape of the man. He made it a dirty fight with Cormier when he probably didn’t have to given his obvious reach advantage. He wanted to make a point of taking down Cormier, just to prove that he could.
Jones mentioned that he usually takes time off in-between fights to relax and play video games with his friend in New York. That was the fake Jon Jones. The real Jon Jones has moved to New Mexico to be closer to Jackson’s MMA and will be right back in the gym by the time you’re reading this. He’s already the best fighter in the world at the age of 27. The scary thing is, he can get better and he wants to get better.
When you’re in camp to train for a fight, chances are you’re not exactly working on new things. You’re trying to get sharp and work off any rust from your break while training for that specific opponent. Fighters get better when they’re not actually training for a fight. When they’re in the gym with no opponent in mind, just focussing on themselves and improving where they are weak. By his own admission, Jones hasn’t really done that. He’s obviously gotten better and more mature in the cage, but if that’s come strictly through fight training camps and actual fights, that’s just a testament to how hard he works in camp and how smart he is.
You may dislike Jones for the way that he carries himself or his often fake persona, but you can’t deny his talent and dedication. That combination is what makes him such a bankable star. Either you tune in to see this punk finally get his block knocked off or you tune in to see a once in a lifetime athlete make highly skilled fighters look like amateurs. They are two simple premises that don’t need to be expanded upon with false narratives and fake accolades by the geniuses in the UFC marketing department.
Jon Jones finally embraced who he is. Now we should all embrace Jon Jones.
I leave you with the following rap by my former writing partner Samer Kadi:
Jon Bones Jones, is coming fo yo homes, to take away your video games and smart phones
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