Showdown on UFC 152: Jones to make history

As the City of Toronto prepares to host its third UFC event, it also is priming itself to write a few chapters in MMA’s history books.

UFC 152 will be headlined by light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones, who at age 25, is on the precipice of furthering his already existing record, one that may never be broken again.

The Past, The Present, The Future

There have been ten men who have previously worn the organization’s 205 lbs title. Four are retired: Frank Shamrock, Tito Ortiz, Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell. The remaining six fighters are: Vitor Belfort, Quinton Jackson, Forest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida and Mauricio Rua. With a victory over Belfort on Saturday night, Jones will have defeated all but one of the still competing former champions, something no other divisional champion under the Zuffa banner can ever lay claim to, let alone anyone in the near future be able to replicate.

While a future bout versus Griffin is a long shot, another record for “Bones” is on the horizon. With one more successful title defence, he will move one step closer to Ortiz’s record of six successful title defences. Should Jones have his arm raised at Air Canada Centre, he will have successfully defended the title four times. If he manages to remain undefeated by the summer of 2013, we could be talking about one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time, and best pound for pound fighter in the sport.

Ready to shock the world

Standing in his way is a near 16-year veteran southpaw striker, with fourteen (T)KO’s, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with three submission victories, and a man who could be dubbed “The Matt Serra of 2012”.

Back in April of 2007, Serra was about a 7-to-1 underdog heading into his title fight opposite champion Georges St-Pierre. What many believed was going to be a wasteful main event got a treat when “The Terror” landed an overhand right (more like an old school wrestling clothesline when watched in slow motion), that spelled the beginning of the end for GSP. Moments later, Serra became the new welterweight champion.

On paper, Belfort, who is an even bigger underdog at UFC 152, is a more accomplished puncher than Serra. In the octagon, his striking techniques are more polished and the same can be said when one examines how his boxing stacks up with that of Jones. The old adage “a puncher’s chance” holds true in this bout and it can happen, so MMA fans should be ready, and not be surprised if the Rio de Janeiro native, pulls off the upset.

Jones is a heavy favourite for a reason. He has proven to be near perfect in the octagon and should continue that trend at UFC 152, but I for one will not be surprised if his perfection gives way to a momentarily lapse of being human. If he bobs when he should weave, or parries when he should have angled out, a Brazilian reality check could leave him on his back wondering what happened.

A first is upon us

There have only been seven previous occasions, in nearly twenty years that a fighter was crowned the first ever divisional champion. Heavyweight Mark Coleman and light heavyweight Frank Shamrock did it in 1997. Welterweight Pat Militech did it in 1998. Middleweight Dave Menne and lightweight Jens Pulver did it in 2001, while featherweight Jose Aldo Jr. and bantamweight Dominick Cruz did it in 2010.

On Saturday night, either Joseph Benavidez or Demetrious Johnson, will join this exclusive list of seven, when the first ever divisional champion at 125 lbs will be crowned.

This bout will determine the world’s best flyweight and has been a pure pleasure trying to analyze. Watching previous bouts of both “Beefcake” (Benavidez) and “Mighty Mouse” (Johnson) has been a great ride thus far, and when they finally meet in the eight-sided proving ground, many long-standing hardcore mixed martial arts fans will likely put their phones down, ask for some space so they may gander upon the greatness that is the incredible spectacle of these two warriors.

Watching them fight will be akin to seeing a real life video game unfold. More high-level technique will likely take place in one of their scrambles than a full round of watching an Anderson Silva or GSP fight. Speed, reaction time and excellence in execution happen in fast forward at 125 lbs, and to the untrained eye, it can never truly be appreciated. Perhaps, for the first time in my time covering this sport, I sincerely hope that a bout does in fact, go the full five rounds.

Saturday night is alright for fighting

While the main and co-main event scraps will be exquisite to absorb, there is also a middleweight contender bout between Michael Bisping and Brian Stann. At stake, a potential middleweight title shot versus pound-for-pound king, Anderson Silva. If it’s indeed “The Count” who wins, can you imagine Silva versus Bisping in England?

The event also marks the return of light heavyweight Matt Hamill, who will take on Canadian Roger Hollett who will be making his UFC debut. “The Hulk” will join three other Canadians on the card, welterweight Sean Pierson (versus Lance Benoist), lightweight TJ Grant (versus Evan Dunham) and bantamweight Mitch Gagnon (versus Walel Watson). The Pierson and Grant bouts will air nationally across Canada during Sportsnet’s broadcast of the prelims.

History is upon us, so seize the moment – it’s not often that the MMA constellation of stars align themselves during one UFC event. Saturday night cannot come soon enough, but it’s official: fight week in Toronto, has begun.