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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
When Jon Jones said he was open to coaching on The Ultimate Fighter, he wasn't kidding. According to a report from The LA Times on Tuesday, Jones will coach the third installment of the reality series against Chael Sonnen, with the two squaring off on April 27, 2013.
The third season of the show, which will feature middleweight fighters, will begin airing in January, leading up to their fight in April.
Jones turned down a fight against Sonnen on eight days notice for UFC 151, and had in the past expressed his thoughts that Sonnen wasn't deserving of a fight against him. However, he's warmed up to the bout in recent weeks as fan interest has been high.
"This should be a good one," UFC President Dana White said about the fight. "Jon has accepted the fight. He knows the fans want to see that fight."
The new season of TUF will begin filming in Las Vegas on Oct. 29, and will air weekly on FX beginning in January. The currently running series is experiencing the lowest ratings the show has seen to date, and there's no word on whether or not the January show will air on a different night.
Penick's Analysis: Well, that clears up what the UFC's plans are for the light heavyweight division. Sonnen was scheduled to fight Forrest Griffin this December at UFC 155, but those plans have been scrapped and he will jump right into a title fight against Jones in April. It's not a bout he deserves, but he's successfully talked his way into it. The reality show has to run on a different night, because even these two as coaches won't dramatically drive up ratings if it's still in the Friday night timeslot, but with it starting in January it won't keep Jones sidelined long. My concern initially was an extended layoff for Jones, but April provides a perfectly acceptable time between fights for the Champ, especially considering he's nursing a sore arm from the Vitor Belfort armbar at UFC 152. The UFC is definitely trying to put something major forward to kick off 2013, and this should be interesting.
[Jon Jones art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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