Jon "Bones" Jones, the top mixed martial artist in the world and UFC's light heavyweight champion has made a lot of noise about a superfight with heavyweight titlist Cain Velasquez. That is moving into the background, however, after UFC announced Jones will be taking on Glover Teixeira in a light heavyweight bout in which Jones will defend his championship.
UFC has announced the long-anticipated Jones-Teixeira match twice before, only to pull the rug out from underneath excited UFC fans. Jones was linked to Teixeira as the main event for both UFC 169 and UFC 170, only to back out both times due to extensive injuries suffered against Alexander Gustafsson.
Teixeira is considered a serious threat to Jones, as he is currently on a 20-fight win streak. His last loss came in 2005, his fourth professional bout. He is undefeated in his five fights under the UFC banner, and four of those victories came via knockout. His last fight was a demolition of respected UFC veteran Ryan Bader. According to UFC.com, Teixeira is also nearly impossible to get on the mat, avoiding 100 percent of takedowns attempted against him.
Despite his qualifications, the fight's announcement isn't without controversy. Many felt that Alexander Gustafsson deserved a rematch with Jones, having gone the distance with him and inflicted large amounts of punishment.
Jones openly pined for a new opponent, which some saw as a method of ducking another tough fight. However judging from Bones' comments about Teixeira, he's expecting another brutal affair.
"I'm getting ready to fight this guy from Brazil who's won twenty fights in a row. Who's short and muscular and who finishes fights," Jones said.
As for Gustafsson, he's set to take on Jimi "The Mauler" Manuwa, a matchup Jones frowned upon as an "easy road" to a rematch. UFC president Dana White quickly responded to his disapproval by essentially telling him to hush up.
"Jon, I love ya, (but) you're not a matchmaker," UFC president Dana White said. "Fight your fight, he'll fight his fight, and don't worry about it. It makes it sound like you're worried about it. When you talk like that, it makes it sound like you're worried about it."
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