UFC 285 Aftermath: Jones Becomes the GOAT

With his win at UFC 285, Jon Jones may have cemented himself as the most accomplished mixed martial artist of all time. In the main event, after three years away from the sport, Jones dominated Ciryl Gane with just over a minute of control time. While that may not seem like much, it was nearly half of the fight. Around the midpoint of the first round, Jones submitted Gane with a guillotine and joined the seven other UFC fighters who have won titles in multiple weight divisions.

Fans already knew that Jones was one of the best ever, but not getting a second title in modern MMA almost always excludes a fighter from all-time great conversations. Now Jones is at the top, however, and he may be at the top of the double champion list. In today’s Aftermath issue, we will examine that short fight and get some nuggets on what could be in store for Jones’ heavyweight title reign.

Pure Domination

I’ll give you a warning: Normally Beforemath and Aftermath are long articles. I like to give the reader as much bang for their buck as they want; sort of a “Thank you for clicking my article!” But this one is going to be short and sweet. Jones didn’t give us much to digest, and that’s honestly just as important as a technical masterclass at times. Jones gave Gane nothing to work with at UFC 285. He didn’t allow Gane to get into any sort of rhythm and the moment a takedown presented itself, Jones took it and began to do what he does best: win.

Jones made it clear very early that he wasn’t going to be playing into Gane’s game. He planned on doing what he wanted to do and not play into the strengths of his opponent just to “beat them at their own game.” This was something we identified in Beforemath. There, we said that if Jones planned on fighting in Gane’s world, it could be a long and miserable night for him. I urged him to just fight how he fights best, rather than neglect his wrestling just to prove a point. Legacy was on the line. Jones did just that and pursued a grappling-first game plan. Almost immediately, he reached down to catch a Gane kick and try to get a takedown. He failed that time, but kept at it.

Jones really is capable of capitalizing on any mistake his opponent makes: If you mess up, he can punish you. Gane’s sin was overcommitting on a left hand. In the first diagram above, we see (1) Jones waiting on Gane to do something. He is pressing forward trying to pressure the Frenchman and (2) eventually Gane throws a long left cross and really overextends on it. Jones sees this and slips to the outside to get in on the takedown and that extra extension is all Jones needed to stick to Gane like two magnets. (3) Jones immediately gets the body lock, (4) goes behind Gane and (5) gets him to the ground.

Looking at this alternative view of the takedown, we get a clearer of a glimpse of what went on. (1) As Jones got behind Gane, he kept his body lock. (2) Gane started to fight the hands as Jones tried to get under him and complete the takedown which, to Gane’s credit, was the right thing to do. Instead of letting Gane fight the hands, Jones (3) threw his right arm over the shoulder of Gane into a seatbelt grip. With the seatbelt locked in, Jones was able to drag Gane to the ground and go on to win the fight.

Eventually, Gane would get to the fence but the relentless pressure from Jones was too much. He was down, but Jones kept him pressed against the fence and scooped the legs out from under him. He used a similar technique to scoop up Daniel Cormier against the fence in their first fight.

Bundled over, it was hell for Gane. Jones was on top of him, chest pushing down low, and Gane’s head folded over. Jones let up the pressure when the first choke didn’t sink in and Gane lifted his chin just enough. Jones slid his forearm in and locked the choke down.

At the end of the day, Jon Jones didn’t do anything particularly special. It was all kind of run-of-the-mill wrestling if we are being honest. But what makes Jones so great is that he knows what to do and when. He can be fancy with spinning back elbows and hellacious ground and pound. Or he can simply slip a cross and get the body lock for a takedown. It’s what makes him so great.

Jones may have accomplished in one round what Francis Ngannou took five to do, but styles make fights and this matchup was tailor-made for Jones to shine in the manner he did. Up next is a superfight with former heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic, if the postfight talk is to be believed. Miocic claims that he’s bigger than both Gane and Jones which is likely an answer to the size disparity he suffered against Ngannou in their second fight. Regardless of what’s next and how it goes down, Jones’ legacy is in cement and it’s dried. He’s one of the all-time greats.

Looking back at his performances against names like Mauricio Rua, Lyoto Machida, Rampage Jackson, Daniel Cormier and now Gane, Jones’ resume boasts a who’s-who of light heavyweight and now heavyweight MMA. If he has the chance to add to that list Miocic, the man with the most title defenses in UFC history and the only other man to beat Daniel Cormier, it is a must-have for his legacy. You can rest assured, should it go down, the Beforemath will be pretty sweet, so keep tuning in. We have fights to break down!