Mar-19-2010

Jon Jones – The Evolution of Look-See-Do

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By Thomas Gerbasi

Jon Jones stood in the Octagon on the night of December 5, 2009, disappointed, but with his head held high. There would be no whining, no complaining, no angry outbursts after his disqualification loss against Matt Hamill, though he probably would have been justified on all three counts.

“I’ve heard so many times that when you lose, you come back a better, stronger person,” Jones told UFC commentator Joe Rogan after the nationally televised bout. “Regardless of the outcome, God is still really good to me and life is so great, and I’m so grateful for being healthy. Everything happens for a reason.”

In a world filled with whiners, complainers, and angry outbursts, it was a jolt of fresh air. What made it even more impressive was that minutes before, Jones was delivering what may best be described as a schoolyard beatdown. On point from the opening bell against the ultra-tough Hamill, Jones dominated his fellow college wrestler, taking him to the mat, dislocating his shoulder in the process, and then unleashing a ground and pound attack that had many in The Pearl at The Palms yelling for referee Steve Mazzagatti to halt the bout.

Moments later, he did, but only after Jones delivered a series of illegal “12 to 6” elbows that forced him to be disqualified. It was the end of ‘Jonny Bones’ perfect MMA record, but he kind of turned the loss into a victory with his post-fight show of class.

“Outside of the Octagon I’m a pretty relaxed and mellow guy and I’m pretty level-headed,” explained Jones. “So once the fight was over and the decision was made, I wasn’t gonna cry over spilled milk. There was nothing I could do about it, so I took it in stride. Things happen for a reason and I just continued to move forward and continued to work on my game. I’m not worried about a win or a loss. I think all this stuff is just experience, and ultimately I’m looking at the big picture, so you’re gonna have to take your bumps, keep on moving forward, and worry about that big picture.”

Yes, he’s only 22 years old. But maturity like that doesn’t come overnight; it’s developed over years and years, and for Jones it came from not only his family, but his mentors and coaches.

“It was just the way I was brought up,” he said. “My wrestling coach in high school, Mr. Jack Stanbro, he always taught us to act with class no matter what happens. I’ve taken losses before in my wrestling career, and he was the type of coach where every time we showed up at a meet we had to dress up in a suit and a tie and if we lost he would never want to see bad sportsmanship shown. It’s who I am, it’s embedded deep within me, and it’s what I’ve been raised around.”

In a lot of ways, Jones doesn’t remind me of any fighter, past or present, but of guitar virtuoso Jimi Hendrix. Hold on, indulge me for a minute. Check out youtube.com for any interview clips of Hendrix and you’ll see and hear a mellow, laid-back musician far removed from the showman who practically attacked his Fender Stratocaster on stage. Jones has a similar dichotomy in his personality and virtuosity in his style. Outside of competition he’s a 22-year old – cracking jokes, laid-back, always with a smile on his face. But when the bell rings, the joking stops and he becomes a dangerous young man with the type of unorthodox fight style that makes him a hellish matchup for anyone at 205 pounds. And if you want to see ferocity, look at the last 90 seconds of the Hamill fight for proof of that.

It’s why the fight world is so excited about the rise of Jon Jones. He’s been called ‘The Next Big Thing’ ever since his UFC debut against Andre Gusmao in August of 2008, and he has not disappointed yet with his wins over Stephan Bonnar and Jake O’Brien, as well as the loss to Hamill. Magazines put him on the cover, websites cover his every move, and his teammates at the Greg Jackson MMA Gym in Albuquerque sing his praises. It can almost be too much for any fighter, let alone a 22-year old, to handle. But in the eye of the storm, he remains calm.

“I have to realize that I’ve got kids at home, so it really keeps me in the house and keeps me grounded,” said Jones, who has two children with his fiancée Jessie. “If I don’t make it in this sport, I put my family in jeopardy. I can’t afford to lose, and I can’t afford to not take this seriously.”

And again, Jones doesn’t just rely on himself to keep things in perspective; he opts to look to his inner circle for guidance as well.

“Greg Jackson, the team, and all my friends are older than I am, so they know that I’m young,” he said. “And because all my friends are older, they’re all like big brothers, father figures, and uncles, and they won’t allow their little brother to go down that path. So I never stray too far from mixed martial arts. It’s all I have in this world right now, it’s my everything, and wasted potential is so sad. I’m aware of that, so I keep focused, try to improve, and right now is the time for a guy like me. I’m young, I’m coming up, I’m getting better at things, and right now is when I need to dedicate my life to this. One day I want to be the type of athlete that fights like Anderson Silva and that fights like GSP (Georges St-Pierre), and I know that having great character outside of the Octagon is a huge part of being a successful athlete. I just try to keep it classy, and I do want to show the world that we are not ignorant brawlers.”

Needless to say, all the ingredients are there for Jones to one day join Silva and St-Pierre at the top of the pound for pound list, but after just four UFC fights (ten overall), that day is still a ways off. In the meantime, there are other matters to tend to first, and for Jones, that’s his ‘step-up’ bout this Sunday against perennial contender Brandon Vera.

The lead-up to this intriguing main event matchup has focused on Vera, a “Next Big Thing” himself a few years back, facing the new ‘young gun’ in town in Jones. That’s definitely a valid marketing angle, and on paper, the two have similar approaches to the game in terms of solid wrestling and striking. Vera will hold the jiu-jitsu edge, and is a more technical striker, but Jones’ unpredictability and ever-evolving game even things out.

So when it comes down to it, this one will come down to the little things, and Jones believes he’s got that end of the game covered. For an example, just look back to his last bout against Hamill.

“I felt like I had Matt Hamill figured out,” said Jones. “I watched so much film on him that I knew his tendencies, then I got his timing down, and I knew when he’d drop his hands, or when he’d do this or that. I had a lot of faith in my training camp as well. We have great strategists and that started things off, and we’ve got guys who worked on specific techniques, attacked my weaknesses, and emulated my opponent.”

Jones also has a religious fervor when it comes to watching film, and with Vera having 11 UFC fights thus far, that’s plenty of footage for him to dig in to.

“That’s why the Brandon Vera fight is so exciting because I’ve watched every one of his fights,” he said. “I’ve watched all of his losses at least 50 times. I’ve studied his tendencies, what it takes to make him break, all that stuff.”

But what if Vera is doing the same thing?

“Guys who study my fights, I try to give them an evolution, and they’ll see a totally different style in every fight,” he counters. “So it’s kinda hard right now to predict what I’ll do in my next fight because every fight is very different and I’ll come back a completely different fighter for a completely different opponent.”

Good answer, yet regardless of how much studying each man has done, the final exam is on Sunday in Broomfield, Colorado. Jones has his pencils sharpened and he’s ready. As for the pressure of passing or failing this test, he puts all that on Vera’s shoulders.

“I see a guy who needs to win almost,” said Jones of Vera. “Not that the UFC’s gonna kick him out, but I think he needs the win. I’m sure he doesn’t want to lose to the new guy, the 22-year old, and I’m sure he has pressure. His reputation’s on the line. He was the new, exciting guy, and now someone else is coming in and trying to take that ‘exciting fighter in the light heavyweight division’ title away from him. So where he’s got the pressure of needing to win, I have no pressure. I just had my first loss, and I’m a guy who really wants to win. Wanting to win creates energy, and needing to win creates frustration and fatigue.”

Yes, he’s just 22.