GimmeShelter

I'll be honest, I don't think he stands a chance against Jones. I don't think he'd be able to deal with Jon's massive reach nor do I think his counter punches and kicks will work against him, in fact I have a hard time seeing him get inside. Also I think Jones would be able to take him down at will.

Is Lyoto a legit challenger? Yes but will he be any different than all the others that were destroyed by Jones? Most likely not.

liveson777

I think machida will always be a contender against anyone ....jbj is amazing... But so is machida this would be very interesting fight jbj reack is one of his biggest assets very explosive fighter... Machida seems methodical and great range once he finds it...it would be an amazing fight....


Ooooo I'm on his 3 posted I feel blessed props for posting this thread. Props =repp

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My Top 10:
Fedor
Henderson
GSP
Lyoto Machida
Aleks E
Josh Barnett
Big Nog
BJ Penn
Anderson Silva
Cro Cop Musosi and bada hari

Voiceless

I on the other hand think, that Machida could be the one who gives Jones the most trouble. Why¿ Because he fights differently than the others. Most other opponents met Jones' force with force, but pure physical power is Jones's domain. In addition, while Jones' striking is technically not very sound yet, his willingness and joy in trying things out gives him a bigger striking arsenal than most other fighters use. That, even if technically not perfect, gives him an advantage when standing toe to toe and trading strikes with him. So his former opponents played his game, Machida doesn't. Machida's fighting style is not meant to step into Jones' domain, it's almost the exact opposite. The elusiveness is what could give Jones big trouble.

It's still a fight though and maybe Jones can put a pressure on Machida which the latter can not avoid, but stylistically Machida could pretty much be the answer to Jones.

TheLyotoLegion

It'd be interesting to see what happens when they go to the ground, Machida's ground game is very underrated and Jones long limbs are always going to leave him open to submissions. Jones/Machida is the most interesting fight by far at 205 because Machida brings a more methodical style as opposed to the slugger/wrestler style Shogun, Rampage, and Rashad bring.

Another thing people seem to forget that Machida is very, very quick, probably the quickest guy at 205 the way he leaps forward with his punches, his combination on Rampage was very nice and it'd be interesting to see if Jones could handle something similar. Jones and Machida both would have to adapt which is where all the intrigue comes from.

SM33

Rua was trying for leg locks when Jones was in his guard, but he could hardly reach behind Jones' knee because his long legs keep it so far away. I just don't care about Jones until he goes HW, because if he were 3 inches shorter he would have been smashed a couple times by now. He didn't know what Rua was doing, it's just that Rua couldn't reach.

Key to Jones is to get on this inside and hit him hard without getting tied up, and to be able to put him on his back. I bet he is awful off his back.

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Soojooko

I have to admit, I'm *very* keen to see Bones off his back. I've no idea what his guard is like. Everything else he does is stunning. Hard to know how he'll fair till he gets put down.

BobbyCooper

Bones has a lot of holes in his game still.. who can blame him? The guy is still a kid!

Machida would beat him by a mile on the feet and his BJJ is also far superior. If he can stop Jones with his legendary TDD, then he will stop Jones via punches early.

ScouseMMAfan

The Lyoto nuthugging is well an truly back since he beat old man Randy, Dont get me wrong i think his style poses problems for Jones but im truly not sure.

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HW: Nog,Junior Dos santos
LHW: Shogun,Nog(like them equally)
MW: Anderson
WW: Alves
LW: Penn

Team Blackhouse Fo'life

BobbyCooper

His style is an absolut nightmare for Jones!

TheLyotoLegion

This guy right here has the right idea, look at Nelson/Struve and Bowles/Torres, Jones' reach is gonna pose a lot of problems but he's not unbeatable. Machida is the guy that's gonna be able to get in and get out.