UFC
Anthony Johnson says Alexander Gustafsson win rendered him speechless, wants to deliver beating to Jon Jones
Jan 26, 2015 - 4:30:22 PM Anthony Johnson says Alexander Gustafsson win rendered him speechless, wants to deliver beating to Jon Jones

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Heading into UFC on Fox 14, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson believed he was going to stop Alexander Gustafsson. However, once he actually pulled it off on Saturday night, he was taken aback with the reality of the situation.

"It just didn't seem real. I was like, 'I can't believe I just beat the guy who, in my opinion, beat Jon Jones,' so I was really in a state of shock," Johnson said at post-fight press conference (via FoxSports.com). "Nobody's ever stopped Alexander like that before, so I was just speechless, really."

"I never gave up hope on myself, but I never thought I would be in this situation. This is a blessing. There's a lot of people that doubted me, and at times I doubted myself in certain situations. But I'm here and I don't plan on going backwards at all."

Next up for Johnson is the Champ, Jon Jones, and in that fight "Rumble" wants to do something no one has ever been able to do.

"I think I'll be the hardest puncher he's ever faced, and he's faced a lot of top quality guys," Johnson said. Hopefully, I can just do things nobody else has done to him. Alexander gave him, of course, the worst beating he's ever had; hopefully, I can give him one 10 times as worse."

Penick's Analysis: Johnson has continued to get better and better in the last couple of years, and given what he did to Gustafsson, he's absolutely a significant challenge to Jon Jones. The Champ has been hit by several opponents, and though his chin has held up very well, that penchant for allowing fighters to land could lead to a bad night for him. However, Jones may have an entirely different gameplan against Johnson than we've seen him have against anyone else, because that's just how good he is. If he avoids Johnson's power strikes while keeping the fight in the clinch or on the ground, Johnson may not get a chance to land.