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The Future For Jon Jones

UFC 247 might be Jon Jones biggest test against an undefeated Dominick Reyes, who has a total of 12 straight wins. If Reyes pulls off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history by dethroning the king of the light heavyweight division there would be an instant rematch. If Reyes wins in a rematch he will be the next light heavyweight champ for many years to come. On the other hand, if Jones loses UFC 247 and wins in the rematch of course it will become a trilogy. However, what would happen if Jones gets in that cage of UFC 247 and demolishes Reyes?

What’s Next For Jon Jones?

What would be next for Jon Jones? Jones has already cleared out the light heavyweight division, except Dominick Reyes. If Jones runs through Reyes there would be nothing left in his division. Jones could retire and be considered the greatest light heavyweight, or he can risk his legacy and move up to the heavyweight division. If Jones moves up a weight class he would not have to deal with weight cutting. Could he be limiting his skill every time he cuts weight or is he best at his current weight? Jon can move up becoming weaker against his new larger opponents or he can be the same monster he is when he’s at light heavyweight. The heavyweight division top 10 is a very intimidating lineup. Would Jones have trouble transitioning or would he flourish? If Jones wins UFC 247 proceeding to move to heavyweight it will be a good test to see how he moves against newfound opponents like Derrick Lewis. Derrick Lewis is one of the top ten heavyweights also on the lineup for UFC 247. If Lewis wins his next fight he will be a great opponent for Jones to test the waters in the heavyweight division. If that were to happen it would be throwing Jones a bone. However, the UFC is more likely to throw Jones to the wolves and give him someone in the top three heavyweight division. Jones has already defeated Daniel Cormier so that would not be a fight to make. Curtis Blaydes, on the other hand, is ranked number 3 in the heavyweight division coming off an amazing win against JDS. This means Blaydes would be an opponent open for Jones if he decided to move up a class. Francis Ngannou can also be a great challenge for Jones, with Ngannou gaining strength with every match he faces. Ngannou has a difficult match coming up in March, meaning Jones VS Ngannou would have to be put on the backend for now. As great as a fight Jones against Stipe Miocic would be, the UFC would try to have Jones fight a top tier heavyweight candidate before he gets a chance at the heavyweight champion. UFC 247 will shed light on the future of Jon Jones

Photos by Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports 2019. Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC.

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The Last Dance Burns

Thirty eight years old and on a two fight losing streak is this Gilbert “Durinho” Burns last dance in the UFC? This upcoming weekend Gilbert Burns takes on Sean Brady who has 16 wins and 1 loss in a five round main event. Burns is coming off two back to back losses and this fight against Sean Brady seems like a make or break moment for the trajectory of the rest of Burns career. 

I believe Burns has a good chance at getting a win over Brady. They are very similar in terms of grappling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Burns has 9 submission wins while Brady has 5 submission wins. Usually when two dominant wrestlers/Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighters fight each other there tends to be no grappling and it just ends up being a stand up brawl. An example would be Colby Covington Vs. Kamaru Usman. Therefore if this fight does not end up on the ground I believe the thirty eight year old veteran Gilbert Burns has the advantage because he has more power in his strikes and has six wins by TKO/KO. If Gilbert Burns does lose this weekend I can see him retiring from the UFC and the sport of MMA and maybe transition to strictly Brazilian jiu-jitsu matches, in the past couple of years the sport has grown and is becoming more popular and there is also money to be made in Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitions. Therefore it would not be a bad idea for Burns to go that route but if he does happen to win this weekend I can see him fighting the likes of Colby Covington or the prospect Michael Morales. I do not think title contentions are in the future for Burns. This weekend will shine light on Gilbert Burns’ future. I wish him all the luck and I hope it’s a great fight. 

The Sandman Falling Short

Will Cory Sandhagen be a UFC bantamweight champion? As a fan, I believe it’s very possible, even though he just lost this past weekend to the undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov by unanimous decision. Sandhagen was able to negate most of Nurmagomedov’s wrestling and held his own in the striking department. However, Nurmagomedov was just a step ahead in both wrestling and striking exchanges. Cory Sandhagen has faced the best of the best but sometimes falls short in the most crucial fights that could move him one step closer to becoming the undisputed UFC bantamweight champion. If he had beaten Nurmagomedov this past weekend, he would undoubtedly be fighting for the championship belt. However, since he lost, he finds himself in a bit of a stalemate. He is currently ranked #4, probably just one win away from another title eliminator. But what opponent would get him there? He has already beaten #7 Marlon Vera, #8 Song Yadong, #10 Rob Font, and #12 Mario Bautista. A rematch with any of those fighters likely wouldn’t advance his position. This leaves Petr Yan, who is currently ranked #3, but Sandhagen already lost to Yan, so it’s unlikely the UFC would book that rematch.

Another intriguing matchup for Sandhagen could be Deiveson Figueiredo, who is currently ranked #5. However, I believe the UFC might either give Figueiredo a title shot or have him fight Petr Yan, so that option might not be available for Sandhagen. I think Sandhagen’s best options are the loser of the Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili fight, former champ Henry Cejudo, or Kyler Phillips. With all this being said, I believe Sandhagen is one or two fights away from fighting for a championship belt. He may need to wait and see how the division plays out or find the perfect timing. I do believe Cory Sandhagen has what it takes to be a champion.

The Last Samurai.

It’s been a couple of weeks since Jiří Procházka has fought and lost to Alex Pereira in the UFC.  Jiří lost in devastating fashion by a head kick TKO and this is his second time losing to the light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira by a TKO/KO. Jiří Procházka is currently only thirty one and has a record of 30 wins and 5 losses, Jiří has also already been a UFC champion at the light heavyweight division. However this second loss to Alex Pereira might’ve put him in a standstill position not because he doesn’t have options and opponents to face but since losing twice to Pereira it seems like title contentions are far from obtaining. Procházka has a lot of opponents he can fight to name a few Khalil Rountree, Jamahal Hill, a rematch with Volkan Oezdemir, or Carlos Ulberg if the UFC wants to give Ulberg a big name. With a win over any of those guys he should be next to fight for the belt but I do not think the UFC would book Procházka and Pereira for the third time and this is something Procházka has to know so what should The Last Samurai Jiří Procházka do? Should he go on a tear, run through the division and be undeniable something like Max Holloway did in the featherweight division? Should he obtain one more win and wait for a title shot? Should he drop down to the middleweight and try his luck in a new division? I believe all of these options are great for Jiří and I do believe he will be a champion again. He’s still young and very talented, I hope he takes some time off to get rest and heal and prepare to make a big comeback. 

Who Will Be A Tougher Test For Alex Pereira?

Who Will be a tougher test for Alex Pereira? Johnny Walker or Magomed Ankalaev? This Saturday Johnny Walker takes on Magomed Ankalaev in a five round main event for the UFC. This is a rematch between the two because their last outing resulted in a no contest because Ankalaev threw an illegal knee. I believe the fight could have multiple outcomes. Both fighters have a chance at winning this Saturday however who stands a better chance against the light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. I personally believe Johnny Walker has a better chance at beating Alex Pereira than Magomed Ankalaev does. Alex Pereira is coming from a championship kickboxing background so therefore his kryptonite is strong wrestlers which Ankalaev is but every round they start on their feet. I could see a fight between Pereira and Ankalaev going two ways: Ankalaev wrestles Pereira to winning a decision or Pereira out strikes Ankalaev and obliterates his legs from leg kicks. In one of Ankalaev previous fights against Jan Blachowicz they went to a draw because Ankalaev was out wrestling Blachowicz but every time they were standing on their feet Blachowicz destroyed Ankalaev legs so badly he was limping during the fight. Therefore, if two time kickboxing world champion Alex Pereira could attempt the same fight style against Ankalaev and chop him down with his leg kicks I think Pereira could be victorious against Ankalaev. How would Johnny Walker do against Pereira? I think this fight will play out differently than people expect because most would assume Walker will get destroyed and knocked out in horrendous fashion because he has lost in the past by getting knocked out. I believe the fight will be close. Walker has come a long way and is finally coming into his own as a mixed martial artist. Walker is very explosive and strong. If he can catch Pereira with a flying knee or a straight punch down the middle, I believe he will finish Pereira. The dangers in fighting Walker are his explosiveness if he can use that to his advantage he can definitely win. Therefore, Pereira is a two time kickboxing world champion and has seen it all, but the outcome is unknown and almost fifty-fifty in my eyes I believe Walker will stand a better chance at fighting Pereira than Ankalaev would.

The End Of Conor McGregor?

Does Conor McGregor have what it takes to defeat Michael Chandler? Conor McGregor was a double champ in the UFC winning a belt at featherweight and lightweight simultaneously and is the biggest star in the UFC and in mma history also he’s the wealthiest by a large sum compared to other stars in the UFC. There was a time where Conor McGregor knocked out Jose Aldo in 9 seconds and Aldo was on a 18 fight win streak and is still considered by many the featherweight goat. The same Conor McGregor who put on a masterpiece against Eddie Alvarez and won the Lightweight title. Is this Conor McGregor able to beat Michael Chandler? I came to the conclusion that I have no idea. In recent times McGregor has not won a fight in 3 years and is coming off back to back losses against Dustin Poirier. One of those fights McGregor was Tko and the next fight he basically broke his entire leg. Since then it’s been about 19 months since McGregor has fought and in recent pictures on his instagram he looks like he should be fighting at light heavyweight.

On the other hand Michael Chandler has been very active and been fighting the best the division has to offer, since joining the UFC he has won 2 out of his 5 fights with the organization however he is putting on great and exciting fights at the cost of losing.

Is there a possibility McGregor can beat Chandler? Of course there is but in my humble opinion it seems like McGregor has taken a step back and might not be capable of competing with someone as explosive and hard hitting as Chandler. It seems like McGregor being on top is coming to an end and long overdue. Can McGregor still compete at such a high level while on his yacht? I hope he can. I would love to see McGregor be back in the win column striving to become champion. However those days might be over and there seems to be this foreshadowed of Chandler finishing McGregor. There’s a lot at stake for both fighters if McGregor loses this fight will his legacy be tarnished and destroyed and if Chandler loses does he retire, both guys are in dire need of a win.

End Of An Era?

Israel Adesanya is one of the greatest UFC middleweights of all time and is a future hall of famer. He was 11-0 in his professional MMA career when he joined the UFC. He racked up 5 wins to get a chance to fight for the Middleweight interim championship belt against Kelvin Gastelum and he won in a fight of the night performance. He then faced Robert Whittaker for the undisputed middleweight championship belt and finished Whittaker in the second round. After becoming the UFC middleweight champion, he defended his belt 5 times and cleared out the whole division.

However, this past weekend he fell short against his former kickboxing foe Alex Pereira. Alex Pereira who already beat Adesanya twice in kickboxing transitioned to MMA and beat Adesanya in MMA making this his third overall win over Adesanya who is now the former champion. In the fight that took place this past weekend, Adesanya was up 3 rounds to 1 but in the fifth and final round, he was TKO if he would’ve made it through the last round he will still be the champion. When I see such dominant champions lose it fears me to think that this might be the end of their era. Time after time we see when champions lose, they go on this downward spiral and I hope this is not the case. As a fan of Israel Adesanya, I hope he gets his rematch and becomes the champion again. I would not want this era to end. I believe his key to success is ether capitalize on the wrestling or always keep Pereira on his back foot. If he cannot regain the middleweight championship belt in the rematch than I believe his time might be up and the “The Last Stylebender” era will become finished.

What If Alex Pereira Wins?

This Saturday the dominant UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya takes on former kickboxing foe Alex Pereira. Adesanya has almost looked perfect in his UFC career, his only loss coming at Light heavyweight to the former champion Jan Błachowicz. Alex Pereira beat Adesanya twice in kickboxing and one of those matches Pereira KO Adesanya. Therefore, Pereira has skyrocketed to a title shot in the UFC entering the promotion 3-1 and now getting a title shot by getting three wins in the promotion now being 6-1. I believe this is a lose-lose situation and I cannot comprehend the reasoning for the UFC trying to bring in Pereira and give him a title shot after three wins just because he beat Adesanya in kickboxing but now they will be fighting in a Mixed martial arts fight. If Adesanya wins the fans are just going to say that’s what he’s supposed to do because he’s been fighting in MMA longer however if Pereira wins how do you sell a rematch? It’s almost impossible because if Pereira wins, he will be 2-0 against Adesanya in kickboxing and now 1-0 in MMA. Pereira is 35 years old. If he wins and becomes the champion it’s not like he’s going to be defending his belt as dominant as Adesanya did.

I believe Pereira cannot beat anyone in the top 5 of the division and maybe no one in the top 15 except Sean Strickland; mostly everyone else in the top 15 would take him down so fast and submit him. So why is the UFC investing so much in Pereira, do they have something against Adesanya, is this something Adesanya wanted, why the big push to make this fight happen? I understand that Pereira has wins over Adesanya in kickboxing but this is MMA. Adesanya is literally one of the biggest starts in the UFC and if he loses, Pereira is not going to be able to replace the stardom and have a dominant reign as champion so again I ask myself why is the UFC doing this? If it’s for PPV and tickets sells then I believe it’s not worth the gamble.

Allen Vs. Kattar

Arnold Allen is ranked #6 in the UFC featherweight division and is on an 11-fight win streak with 9 of those wins coming from the UFC. Allen’s latest win is by TKO against Dan Hooker. He takes on Calvin Kattar who is currently ranked #5 in the featherweight division and is coming off a loss to Josh Emmett, he has won 3 out of his last 5 fights. This fight will be fireworks for both fighters trying to get a title shot and become champion one day. I believe this fight is not a title eliminator but it will definitely get the winner one step closer to a title shot. I think this fight will be Allen’s first real test because he looked great in his past fights but he’s going against a veteran who’s faced everyone from former champions, fighters in the top 3, and upcoming prospects. Kattar is coming off a loss to Josh Emmett who is ranked #4 in the division but before that he beat Giga Chikadze who is ranked #8 and was showing a lot of promise of being the future champion but Kattar stopped him in his tracks. I believe this situation is very similar to Kattar fighting an upcoming prospect while trying to keep his spot in the rankings. For Allen, this is a great opportunity if he goes out there and looks flawless against Kattar, he might be able to skip the line and fight for the belt or face the number 1 contender Max Holloway who is just as big. There is a lot on the line for both fighters, and I expect it to produce fireworks. 

Cory Sandhagen Has Many Options!!

This past weekend Cory Sandhagen bounced back from a back-to-back losing streak with a TKO Doctor Stoppage win over one of the hardest-hitting bantamweights Song Yadong.

After a win over Yadong, it opened many doors and opportunities for Sandhagen. His best three options are Marlon Vera who is ranked #5 in the bantamweight division, Merab Dvalishvili who is ranked #3 in the bantamweight division, and the winner of Petr Yan Vs. Sean O’Malley. I believe he would like to stay active so Vera or Dvalishvili makes more sense because the Yan and O’Malley fight is not until October 22nd of this year. If he chooses the Vera fight, I believe whoever wins between them will get a title shot. The same goes for if he chooses to fight Dvalishvili. The top five in the UFC Bantamweight division are all one win away from a titled shot, T.J. Dillashaw is ranked #2 in the division and has a current date to fight the champion Aljamain Sterling which leaves the rest of the top 5 a win away to be next in line. Therefore if Sandhagen gets a win he’ll be next in line for a titled shot.

What Should Tony Ferguson Do?

From going on a 12-fight winning streak and becoming the interim UFC lightweight champion of the world to a 5-fight losing streak and looking like a shadow of what he once was. From being on top of the world to being at the lowest of his career Tony Ferguson has faced many trials and tribulations. This past weekend we saw Tony Ferguson go head-to-head against Nate Diaz in a pay-per-view main event and he lost by a guillotine choke. This was the fifth fight he lost in a row, and I believe he should hang up the gloves. However, after the loss, Ferguson got on the mic and said “I’m fucking back man” which shows he’s not ready to retire. I would like to see him retire. I think maybe he doesn’t want to retire because he doesn’t want to let his fans down and wants to end his career with a win. Ferguson has a cult following fan base and they ride or die for him so I believe he would like to end his career in a good way and not on a five-fight losing streak. Therefore, maybe that’s not the case and Ferguson just hit a bump in the road and is going to make a great comeback. But I do think Father Time has caught up with him and he should just call it a day and retire. He’s had an amazing career and accomplished many things. If he doesn’t retire and decides to fight again, I hope the UFC gives him someone that will be favorable for him or a veteran like him. Tim Means, Robbie Lawler, And Matt Brown would all be fun fights for him. Whatever Ferguson decides to do I’ll be supporting.