5 points to note from UFC 197

#5 Jones Jones v2.0 – Better or Bust?

Jones Jones delivering a kick to the ribs

With it looking highly likely that the company’s stance on pulling Conor McGregor from the UFC 200 card is set in stone, the rematch between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier could well end up being a very viable alternative for the headliner of the card.

Pending Daniel Cormier’s medical clearance for his leg injury, and the UFC signing off on the fight, the second installment of one of MMA’s most heated and bitter rivalries could be re-ignited this July. Only this time, the script could well be flipped on its head.

While the pre-suspension Jon Jones looked nigh unbeatable, much has been made out of how all the power lifting training during his hiatus might end up affecting his performance in the cage. Jones himself may have been rather bullish about the whole issue in the lead up to UFC 197, but his eventual performance against Ovince St.Preux offered little in allaying those concerns.

Against a fighter who was written off as not even in Jones’ league, the number 1 pound for pound fighter in the world looked a shadow of his imperious former self.

Yes, perhaps ring rust does affect even the greatest of fighters, excepting the UFC Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz of course, but could Jones’ somewhat insipid performance be solely attributed to ring rust? Or was there indeed more than meets the eye to the situation as Daniel Cormier on commentary duty thought so?

Often times athletes and especially MMA fighters are extremely wary of their training regimes so as to maintain the exact formula that enables them to function at the optimum level. Did Jon Jones rock a smooth sailing boat by unnecessarily including power lifting into his training repertoire?

Or was his trigger-shy UFC 197 performance perfectly normal for a fighter that had not competed for almost a year and a half inside the Octagon?

Would Jon Jones end up reclaiming the Light Heavyweight Title that he, and most of the MMA world views as rightfully his, or will Daniel Cormier’s brave assertion that Jon Jones v2.0 is not as deadly as the original ultimately prove to be true?

It would seem time, and not too long mind you, will only tell.