Better late than never!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White promised to share some gripping behind-the-scenes footage of UFC 165: "Jones vs. Gustafsson," which took place at Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada, on Sept. 21, 2013. He didn't get to it prior to UFC 166: "Velasquez vs. Dos Santos 3" this past weekend, saving it instead to prime the promotional pump for UFC Fight Night 30: "Machida vs. Munoz," which takes place this weekend (Sat., Oct. 26, 2013) at Phones 4U Arena in Manchester, England.
It was worth the wait.
The video begins with a quick introduction from White, who is currently in Düsseldorf, Germany, most likely getting another "fucking unbelievable" miracle shot to keep his Meniere's Disease in check. It's unclear if Joe Rogan is in tow to get a quick fix on his "messed up" neck.
It then segues right into UFC 165 under card actions, with winners and losers returning to the locker room to get a quick medical check and to celebrate and/or lament their respective performances.
Highlights include Matt Mitrione wondering aloud what went wrong, trying to put together pieces after Brendan Schaub choked him unconscious in their Heavyweight tilt. Eddie Wineland, unsurprisingly, is already calling the stoppage in his Bantamweight world title fight "bullshit," claiming that the referee should have know that he was, "tougher than shit."
And, of course, the video of Jon Jones -- who was casually (and confidently) already comparing himself to a "small group" of UFC luminaries such as Anderson Silva, Matt Hughes and Royce Gracie moments before his Light Heavyweight title defense -- and Alexander Gustafsson combining to deliver an instant five-round classic is the real focus of this piece.
"Amazing! 'Fight of the Night,' 'Fight of the Fucking Year,' Fight of the Fucking I Don't Know What,'" White gushed to Gustafsson after the decision was read. "Unbelievable, fucking unbelievable!" Little did he know, at the time, what Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez were about to pull-off just a few weeks later at UFC 166.
Regardless, it still does not take anything away from a fight for the ages (watch full video highlights here) ... Enjoy!
For more on UFC Fight Night 30, which features a Middleweight main event between former Light Heavyweight champion, Lyoto Machida, against top 185-pound contender, Mark Munoz, visit our complete event archive here. And to check out the latest and greatest "Machida vs. Munoz" fight card and rumors click here.