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As it seemed a superfight between Jon Jones and Anderson Silva could have happened by 2014 with a Silva win at UFC 162, what do you see now in Jones' future after the Alexander Gustafsson fight in September?
RICH HANSEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
After Jones dispatches of Gustafsson, I'd be shocked, SHOCKED I TELL YOU, if he ever fights in the LHW division again. I think he's getting the winner of JDS and Velasquez. And if the UFC were serious about making a run at the UFC 100 buyrate, they'll do it Super Bowl weekend with Weidman-Silva. Not saying that they should do that, just saying that if they do that, they'll going to have one of the top two or three selling buyrates in UFC history.
I suppose it's possible he'll stay at 205 and tread water against a field full of guys who can't touch him (literally). Maybe Daniel Cormier will change his mind about wanting a tune-up fight in the LHW division before a title shot. Cormier would be wise to take as many fights as possible before messing with Jones, because once that fight happens, that locks the door on title aspirations in a second division.
C.J. TUTTLE, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
With Silva losing, this puts Jon Jones as the new pound for pound king. In all honesty, it's hard for me to envision anyone coming close to beating Jones in his prime. If anyone ever has the chance to break any of Silva's UFC records, Jones is the man to do it. Looking at the way the question was worded, it looks like I'm not alone on that thought. The UFC keeps trying to push Machida back into the top contender spot, so I'd imagine the winner of Machida vs Davis will be next in line. However, if Glover Texiera gets by Ryan Bader in September, especially if he does so in style, it'll be hard to keep his name out of the title talk.
ANWAR PEREZ, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
I still don't see why they couldn't do that fight. It's marketable by namesake alone, plus Silva losing for the first time in close to seven years doesn't really hinder the superfight as much as one would think. Jon Jones should be able to dispatch Alexander Gustafsson easily, and set up Jones vs Silva. It's still doable. I think losing last Saturday was the best outcome for this fight to still happen without the UFC looking selfish, and tying up two different championships.
SHAWN ENNIS, MMATORCH SENIOR COLUMNIST
As to the premise, I still don't buy that a super fight with Jones is off the table. Would you still pay to see a fight between Anderson Silva and Jon Jones? Because I would. I haven't lost interest in that at all. That's the unique thing about the way in which Silva lost. He got knocked out, but not in a way where it looked like his skills were diminishing. It may be that we eventually look back and see that fight as the indicator of future events, but it's too early to tell. But to summarize, I don't think a super fight between Jones and Silva has quite lost all its luster. But to move on to the questions, it all kind of depends on what Jones's goals are. Does he want to dominate light heavyweight for as long as Silva dominated middleweight? If so, he's halfway there. He would tie Silva's record with 10 title defenses, and he has five right now. There aren't a lot of guys whom Jones hasn't beaten at the top of the light heavyweight division, so that may not be an attractive option to him if he wants to continue to look for fresh matchups. Then again, he could emulate Silva in another way: dabbling at heavyweight while staying at 205 as the champion. I think that's the more likely scenario, as Jones seems to be the kind of guy who is driven by milestones. I could be way off, but it's just a feeling I get from hearing him talk. I think he'll stay at 205 and defend the belt for as long as he can - either until he gets 10 or 11 defenses or until he loses it - and then he'll move to heavyweight.
CAMERON LYMAN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
Assuming that Jones beats Gustaffson, I see him taking on Glover Texeira, Lyoto Machida, Daniel Cormier or anyone else that can make a claim as the number one contender in Light Heavyweight as long as he can still make 205. If he can continue to win, look for him to take over the spot as the number one pound for pound fighter by most observers.
FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR
If Jones beats Gustafsson and if Silva were to beat Weidman in a rematch, I think they could still do a Jones-Silva superfight. Outside of that, I guess Jones defends against Lyoto Machida if Machida beats Phil Davis later this year.
BRAD WALKER, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
He will torpedo Gustafsson then fight either Lyoto Machida after he murders Phil Davis or Glover Teixeira after he crushes Ryan Bader. Those are really the only two in the running right now, Rashad Evans is a bit behind those two, the LHW title picture is kind of a mess because of the lack of opposition, Jones has decimated a ton of fighters and now perhaps could be the best P4P fighter in the world. In the end Gustafsson will lose, and find himself against Glover Teixeira while Machida fights Jones in a rematch.
DAN MOORE, MMATORCH UK COLUMNIST
After Alexander Gustafsson is predictably dispatched in September – there really isn't a whole lot left for him at 205 lbs. Only Glover Teixeira and Daniel Cormier (if he drops down from HW) seem to be credible options should they remain unbeaten after their next fight(s). Failing that we're back to the start and fighters like Lyoto Machida will get a second attempt just because there's no one else left.
I really like the idea of Jon Jones moving up to Heavyweight. With him in the picture, it adds a dimension to the division we've never seen before. After all there's only so many times they can do Velasquez vs. dos Santos. If the champ wins the rubber match later this year – that effectively eliminates Cormier from consideration. By adding Jones to the mix, he would improve the competition immeasurably. I expect him to make the move up by the end of 2014, or straight after he's broken every record on offer at 205 lbs.
MATT PELKEY, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
Well Jones, despite having "cleaned out" the UFC light-heavyweight division by beating a rash of former champions and future hall-of-famers in the last 2+ years, actually has a handful of interesting challenges still awaiting him at 205. Gustafsson gets the first crack, but after him Glover Texiera is waiting right behind. Dan Henderson has lost two straight, but he's yet to have his crack at the young champ and would still be a sell-able opponent if the UFC was devoid of other options. Phil Davis isn't quite the super-prospect we all hoped for, but a year from now he might have made some necessary improvements and be knocking on the door in the title picture.
Its not like there isn't still a helluva lot of money in a potential Jon Jones-Anderson Silva superfight; it might just need some time to build it back up to a fever pitch. Bones has enough challenges to keep him busy while Anderson wins a fight or two to wipe the taste of the Weidman loss out of our collective mouths.
[Jon Jones art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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