UFC 128 – Jon Jones reveals a 6-foot-5, 250 pound monster is his secret weapon ahead of title fight

Many fans have been left to wonder what will happen if UFC light heavyweight number one contender, Jon Jones is dragged into the latter rounds this weekend at UFC 128 in Newark, New Jersey after fading in the third earlier in his career when he fought Stephan Bonnar. Well the challenger wants you to have no fear about that after bringing in a man dubbed “The Beast” to force him into survival mode.
Speaking via UFC.com, Jones reveals that after four hard rounds of sparring down in Albuquerque, New Mexico against the best the Greg Jackson camp can offer the 6-foot-5, 250 pound Tyler “The Beast” East steps into the cage and literally pushes him to his limits.

“This kid swings. And he swings every punch with horrible intentions. He throws hard right kicks to the legs and to the head, and when he punches it’s literally like fighting Goliath. He really makes me feel like I have to survive.”

“This feeling that he (East) gives me, no one has ever given me in an MMA match outside of maybe Stephan Bonnar when I got really tired and I didn’t really know what I was doing. But for me to have a whole playbook of tactics now and the cardio and wrestling to back it up, this kid still puts me in deep water and the coaches unleash this beast on me only when I get tired.”

“This kid comes in and tries to rip my head off. Then I go up against Joey Villasenor, he has that uppercut and that overhand right, and my team is just brutal. They’re truly vicious, so when I go through a practice, it’s a whole different level than anything I’ve ever experienced in a fight.”

Jones then spoke about his idols in the sport growing up as a young hopeful looking for a break, admitting Mauricio “Shogun” Rua did catch his eye with his aggressive style but it was really Anderson Silva that captured his imagination.

“I always thought he was vicious, brutal, and mean. He was kicking people in the face, aggressive, and he was the first person I watched. I thought hopefully I’ll fight him one day, and it came to pass. I never looked up to Shogun though. He was just the first fighter I got into once I got into the sport. Second came (UFC middleweight champion) Anderson Silva and once I caught a breath of him, I totally forgot about Shogun and totally become obsessed with Anderson Silva. But I just remember, wow, this guy Shogun, he won the PRIDE Grand Prix championship and he’s only 23. That motivated me and showed me that it’s all possible.”

“I envision me going out there, fighting my fight, keeping my hands high, exchanging punches with him, taking kicks, and kicking him right back just as hard.  “I can see myself taking him down at will, even worse than I did Stephan Bonnar. I could see myself submitting him on the ground, I could see myself being way overwhelming and just way too much on top. I don’t think he’s ever fought someone who’s gonna throw leg kicks at him, and basically anything he can do, I feel that I can do better.”

“I’m young, I’m hungry, and Shogun’s smart and a great fighter, but I just feel that there’s nothing he can do that I can’t. I can throw an overhand right, I can swing for the fences, and I can throw a leg kick just like he can throw a leg kick. There’s really nothing that he has that I don’t besides a black belt, and when it comes to that black belt, I want to show that hard work and dedication and just believing can overcome any type of black belt.”

Jones steps into the octagon this Saturday night the favourite in many fans and bookies minds after running through everyone put in front of him in the light heavyweight division, and in style. Can he add the name of “Shogun” to the list a begin a new era at 205 pounds?