UFC 140 

Jones vs Machida

Prediction

Jon 'Bones' Jones has been on an epic run as of late, defeating Shogun Rua and even submitted Rampage Jackson. But, his next opponent is not an easy puzzle to crack. His opponent is Machida, a fighter that can find his range perfectly and utilize his speed and timing to avoid trouble. Machida can go onto the offensive as well as he can defend, just ask Thiago Silva.

However, Bones has defeated the two guys that have defeated Machida (which are Rampage and Rua) and he did it convincingly. With that logic Bones should win, correct? Nevertheless, mma math does not always work that way and on any given night a fighter could bounce back into stardom.

So, lets compare both fighters.......

Jones has incredible reach and a huge size advantage at 6 foot 4. Not only is Jones tall but he has some of the longest arms ever in the light heavy weight division. Jones uses his massive reach to keep attackers at bay and if they charge forward he uses his Greco Roman wrestling to send them to the canvas mat, where he can apply the deadly Greg Jackson elbow. His attacks can come from any angle with frightening speed and power.

Machida has some good weapons as well. He uses his Karate (known as Machida Karate) to find his range and to stay out of his opponent's reach. He is a counter striker, so if you bull rush him then you will be in some serious trouble. He is known as one of the hardest opponents to take down due to his Sumo training and he can deliver some heavy blows in seconds, and he almost finished Rampage Jackson (But Jackson won the first 2 rounds and got the decision).

For Jones to win this he needs to utilize his reach advantage, but don't rush in too early, and do not let Machida find his range. Jones can also use his size advantage to push Machida against the fence and pepper him with knees or even try his luck at taking down the smaller Machida (though this might be difficult for even Jones).

For Machida to win this, he needs to find his range, look for a clear opening and then strike hard without hesitation. Rampage showed good head movement against Jones but he did not let his hands fly when the opportunity arose. Machida needs to dodge and come in quick, then let his hands go to work. Machida can knockout opponents even with straight on punches, but he still needs to use his accuracy to maximize the damage.


Who Am I Picking?

I am going with Jones. Jones' natural body size, in my opinion,  makes him the harder puzzle to crack.


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