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Earlier this afternoon during the pre-UFC 165 conference call, there were plenty of Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson comparisons. One would expect this to be the case, especially with UFC 165 (details here) airing live on pay-per-view (PPV) from Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Sept. 21, 2013.
But, it didn't take long before Jones was asked the usual mixed martial arts (MMA) questions, mainly regarding former Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and the Earth-shaking loss "Spider' suffered at the hands of Chris Weidman at UFC 162.
The same loss that put Jones on top of Silva in the top pound-for-pound rankings.
"Bones" dished:
"I absolutely know that I am not unbeatable. There is no one that is unbeatable. I don't compare myself to Anderson Silva and the fight that he lost, it has nothing to do with me"
The Light Heavyweight champion (18-1) continued, explaining how the two are at completely different points in their respective MMA careers:
"Silva has been in the game for a long time and maybe he's at the end of his career, but I just turned 26 years-old -- [have] no injuries -- I am at the very beginning of my career. We are at completely different stages as far as drive and motivation."
Not wanting to call Silva's drive and determination into question, Jones caught himself and quickly clarified what he really meant to eliminate possible misinterpretation.
His take:
"I can't say drive or motivation, but we are at completely different levels in where we are at. He's been doing this for so long and I am just getting started."
This is fact.
With Silva at 38 years old and Jones 12 years his junior, the two are on opposite ends of the plane. But, the remarks certainly have a different tone than those Jones made prior to UFC 162.
With both having fights lined up already, and the two previously destroying everyone (outside of Chris Weidman and Matt Hamill) in their divisions, the stage infinitely remains set for a "super fight" between the G.O.A.T. and the challenger to his throne.
Unless "All American" (again) and "The Mauler" have something to say about it.
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