The Formula to Beat Jon Jones

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Former WEC middleweight champion and Pride Fighting Championships veteran Paulo Filho discussing the keys to someone defeating light heavyweight king Jon Jones in a recent interview with Sherdog.com:

“The way to defeat Jon Jones is simpler than it seems. He’s at an average distance for him, but the opponent has to play inside or completely outside. His reach is 84.5 inches; that’s 84.5 inches the opponent has to climb to hit him. I think the ideal fighter to face him has to be a guy who knows how to get a heel hook, an armbar, a guy who has a good jiu-jitsu. Striking with him is complicated because he’s a very tall guy, so it’s very difficult to approach him. He puts his hand on the opponent’s head, like Anderson Silva, and keeps the opponent away from him. Taking him down is very difficult, too, because he’s an excellent wrestler. He’s a guy who’s innovating and bringing MMA to another level. He lands elbows that did not previously exist and is truly revolutionary. I think the formula for defeating him is to shorten the distance, pull guard and work the attacks there, because I’m sure he’ll make a mistake. I think anyone who has the qualities I’ve spoken about can beat him, but I think they have to be from the old school in jiu-jitsu. The guy also has to have heart because getting in an out the entire fight with Jon Jones will be very difficult. He has to close, pull, climb and try to catch something. Looking at Jones’ wingspan, the pace of his fights, the level he’s at and the way he has defeated his opponents, that’s the only way I can see it happening.”