Jon "Bones" Jones Vs Rashad Evans

Jon "Bones" Jones Vs Rashad Evans UFC 145

These two MMA fighters were very good friends at one point. Being very close, and also training with the same team at Greg Jackson's Gym, they vouched never to fight each other. One thing led to another and the pair became rivals in many ways. Add rivalry, trash talk, Hype, Dollar signs, and the fight the fans now want to see, and what do you get? Well, this week you get Jon "Bones" Jones Vs Rashad Evans. Next week or next month there will be a new rivalry between two other fighters. That's just the way the industry works. Anyway, no complaints, this is a very good fight. Jones and Evans have an extensive history of sparring together, and in those sparring sessions no one really ever got the upper hand on a regular basis. They were very evenly matched. Both know each others strengths and weaknesses having trained together for so long.

Sparring isn't about going all out trying to hurt your partner, it's about learning mostly, so in some ways we don't know if Jon Jones was just taking it easy. It's a mistake for either fighter to look at those past sparring sessions and make the assumption that this fight will be similar, as in very close. From Interview evidence, Jon Jones isn't thinking that but it seems like Rashad Evans is really digging deep to find little instances where he hurt Jones in sparring. Rashad's the one analysing those sparring sessions with a fine tooth comb.

The only thing that really matters is who can execute their game plan effectively on the night.

Rashed Evans has had his day in the sun. He's been there and done it, had many big fights, and beat everyone he has fought except Lyoto Machida, who knocked Evans out. That aside, Evans is an elite level MMA fighter. Rashad is very explosive and very strong. He has a great all round mix of excellent takedowns, excellent striking, and impressive wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu skills. Compared to Jones, Rashad is old, but Rashad is only 32 so could actually be in his prime at that age so don't sleep on Rashad just because he's the older fighter.

Jon Jones is so creative, so unique, and so unpredictable it's hard to see him losing this fight. Jon Jones is a younger and busier version of Anderson Silva. He has great athleticism, excellent wrestling pedigree, and a striking game that's completely off the charts. Youth, sense of distance, and range have also played a big part in why Jones has been so successful in MMA so far. Also, Jon Jones is basically unbeaten. He has one "loss" on his record which is actually a disqualification for illegally hitting Matt Hamill with elbows.

So Jones still doesn't know how to lose, which makes him an even tougher opponent to beat. Jon Jones hasn't been at the elite level of the UFC for very long but he seems destined for greatness and grounded enough to handle the pressure of big fights. Jon Jones disposed of two of the best UFC fighters out there in devastating fashion, Lyoto Machida and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. Let's not forget Rampage Jackson as well, who Jones submitted by Rear Naked Choke. Does the same fate lie in wait for Rashad Evans? We will find out.

Most people have Jon Jones as the favourite, and rightly so. But he's not unbeatable. No fighter is. Rashad Evans has to take Jones out of his comfort zone and rough him up. Make it into a dog fight and not let Jones use his range to control the distance and pace of the fight. With 4 Oz gloves on anything can happen! Looking forward to a great fight. Jon Jones by knockout.

Jon "Bones" Jones Knocks Out Training Partner before UFC 145.

Jon Jones Vs Rashad Evans Weigh-In and staredown.