Jon Jones showed tonight why he has both the skillset and the mindset of a UFC champion.
Formerly undefeated Dominick Reyes was a high-octane, impassioned, raging machine tonight as he faced off against a UFC legend. As the young challenger took on the seasoned bull, Reyes seemed like he may have what it took to overwhelm Jones — in the first round.
But as the fight wore on, the winner — by unanimous decision — proved why he is the best. Jones, in my opinion, dominated rounds 2-5. He exhausted Reyes by walking him down, blocking ineffective strikes, delivering some of his own, and taking down his opponent, often, at the end of the fight.
Jones paced himself.
Like the experienced fighter he is, he knew what he had in the tank. Reyes did not. During the fight, Jones kept the pressure on and did not allow Reyes to dominate the center of the cage after the first round. Jones stalked his prey until he ran him down.
Much like Georges St. Pierre, he never got flustered. The comparison between Reyes and Jones was just an amazing case study on passion and fire vs composure and technique. It was clear very quickly who the boss of the ring was, and it was not Reyes.
Reyes delivered a lot of strikes. But ironically, he beat himself with those strikes. He slowed down so tremendously after the first round that it looked as if he disappeared. He wore himself out, allowing Jones to step into a dominant position.
And though Jones landed seemingly fewer strikes, his landed where they needed to. Reyes was bloodied up after the fight, while Jones, on the other hand, looked like he could go another 4 rounds. Reyes’ spirit was broken, as he could not weaken Jones, no matter how hard he tried.
Both of these fighters fought their hearts out, but Jones earned this one. Expect a re-match in the near future.
