Jon Jones for a Title Shot? Not So Fast

It was the big question that everyone was talking about after Jon Jones annihilated Vladimir Matyushenko in impressive fashion. “Is Jon Jones ready for a title shot?” Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg talked about it, Frank Mir said that Jones is probably ready for the opportunity on “The Daily Line” after the event ended, and Dana White tweeted about it.

However, the question that nobody seemed to be asking was, “Has Jon Jones earned a title shot?”

Look, I’m not going to tell you that Jones isn’t talented. I’m sure he will be a champion one day, at least if he continues to improve in the manner that he has shown so far in his MMA career. However, at the risk of being a spoilsport, I have to wonder out loud whether someone can earn a title shot without having beaten a top ten opponent.

The UFC isn’t Strikeforce, where “King Mo” Lawal paved the way to a light heavyweight title shot with a win over Mike Whitehead. In Strikeforce, it makes sense, as Lawal was obviously more talented than any other light heavyweight in the division besides the one who was holding the title, Gegard Mousasi.

In the UFC, talking about whether Jones is ready for a title shot makes no sense whatsoever, because by my count, eight of the top ten light heavyweights in the world are signed by the promotion. None of them have the name “Jon Jones”, and Jones hasn’t beaten any of the eight, either. To suggest that Jones should leap frog six or seven fighters ranked higher than him to take on the top dog anytime soon is ridiculous.

This is one of the quirks of MMA as a sport: fans, fighters, and media alike get caught up in the excitement and are so often prone to exaggerations and knee-jerk reactions. When someone loses, they suddenly suck and were always overrated. When someone wins, the talk turns to “who can stop so-and-so?” So it only stands to reason that people would be so excited about Jones’ development that they would begin to unwittingly one-up one another by suddenly propelling him to an imaginary title shot.

Unfortunately, while this type of thinking is just part of the fun for most of us, it can be a serious detriment to the fighters themselves. Just as fighters will always argue that they should be allowed to fight until they submit or are unconscious (health risks be damned!), they also always believe that they are ready to fight the best in the world, whether they are or not. It’s a necessary part of the occupation, this self-assured attitude. I don’t know how you could step into a cage and fight another world-class athlete in front of a worldwide audience without it, in fact.

But just like fighters need referees to save them from themselves, they also need managers and trainers to do the same when it comes to planning their careers. The UFC has a puzzling approach to prospects, as they bring some along almost agonizingly slowly, while others get tossed right into the meat grinder at the first sign that they have any kind of potential. Therefore, it’s good to know that Jon Jones has people on his side like Greg Jackson, who insists that Jones should continue to favor the “baby steps” approach to climbing the light heavyweight ladder.

For his part, Jones seems pretty grounded, too, though there is a certain youthful anxiousness to him. He’s understandably confident in his abilities, and he says he wants a “top five” opponent. Again, Jackson is a good influence in that he knows that while Jones may be physically ready to fight a top five fighter, he doesn’t need to rush into doing so. At just 23 years old, Jones has plenty of time to get to the top and then stay there. There’s no reason to risk stalling his eventual rise by throwing him into deeper waters than what are needed.

The UFC benefits from continuing to bring Jones on slowly, too. They have a marketable young fighter on their hands, one who can conceivably carry the division into the next generation once some of today’s noteworthy light heavyweights start to decline. So many times in the past, the UFC has pounced on promoting young fighters to the top, killing their momentum and quite possibly hurting business by allowing the mystique around a seemingly “unbeatable” young fighter to dissipate.

If Jones is properly promoted, he could be on a lengthy winning streak by the time he challenges for the title, hopefully against a similarly-dominant champion. He will have had time to continue to connect with fans and build up even more hype around his appearances, until the paying audience is practically frothing at the mouth to see Jones fight for the title.

I think that Jones needs at least two more quality wins before a title shot should even be mentioned. Light heavyweight champ Mauricio “Shogun” Rua is not going to fight until December or January, anyway, meaning that even a fast track to a title shot wouldn’t get Jones into the cage with a title on the line until mid-2011. In a perfect world, I’d like to see Jones take on someone like Thiago Silva, then a Rich Franklin or Forrest Griffin type, and finally a top dog like Lyoto Machida or Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. You could replace the Silva fight with a bout against fellow up-and-coming light heavyweight Ryan Bader, too.

In any case, here’s hoping that Jones’ next fight comes against someone on the back end of the top ten. It is likely going to be impossible for Jackson or anyone else to continue to stall Jones’ ascent much longer, particularly if he keeps dispatching quality foes the way that he did with Matyushenko. Still, when his inevitable future title shot does come, there should be no question not only that Jones is ready, but also that he has earned the opportunity with results, not just potential.

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Tags: Dana White, Jon Jones, UFC, UFC on Versus 2, Vladimir Matyushenko