UFC 159: Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen

On April 27th 2013, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones faced off against Chael Sonnen in what was one of the most anticipated fights in UFC history. This fight was the pinnacle of 12 weeks of talking and the build-up was especially intense. Jones was eager to put the trash talking to rest, while Sonnen was determined to prove that he was the better fighter. It was sure to be an explosive event.

Overview of UFC 159

UFC 159 (also known as UFC Jones vs. Sonnen) was a mixed martial arts event held on April 27, 2013 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The main event was an UFC Light Heavyweight championship bout between the current champion Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen that ended with a 1st round TKO victory for Jones.

This PPV event marked the first time an MMA organization held two events in the same arena over consecutive days, with UFC on Fox 7 occurring one day earlier on April 26. The card also featured a Heavyweight fight between Roy Nelson and Cheick Kongo, as well as bouts between Michael Bisping and Alan Belcher, Phil Davis and Vinny Magalhaes, Pat Healy and Jim Miller, among others.

The reported attendance for the event was 17195 with a live gate of $2.4 million in revenue. The four fighters who earned “Fight of the Night” awards each received an extra bonus of $65000 while Jon Jones ($400000 bonus) and Phil Davis ($135000 bonus) both earned “Knockout/Submission of the Night” honors as well.

UFC 159 marked yet another successful PPV outing for one of MMA’s most popular stars Jon Jones which solidified his dominance over his opponents yet again!

Background of Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen

Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen faced off in the UFC 159 main event on April 27, 2013 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The fight was one of the most anticipated of the year thanks to an ongoing rivalry that first started several months prior.

Jon Jones is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and a former two-time UFC light heavyweight champion. Born on July 19, 1987, he began competing in MMA in 2008 at the age of 21. Named as “The Prodigy” by MMA Weekly magazine; he remains one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in MMA history. His UFC record stands at 17 wins (12 finishes) and one loss.

Chael Sonnen is an American professional mixed martial artist and political commentator for Fox Sports 1 who competed as a middleweight and light heavyweight for several organizations including Pancrase, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), International Fight League (IFL), Affliction Entertainment, Strikeforce and most notably Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is known as “The Bad Guy” for his outspoken trash talking ability before every fight. He has had 24 professional fights – winning 18 with 15 finishes including nine by submission or technical submission. As of February 2 2019, he is #15 on the official UFC pound-for-pound rankings.

Pre-Fight Analysis

The highly anticipated fight between the current light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, and the ever outspoken, Chael Sonnen, was bound to be an epic matchup. Both fighters have a wealth of experience and have spent months in preparation for this fight.

This section will look at the pre-fight analysis of the match up between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen. We’ll explore the strategies each fighter has employed leading up to UFC 159.

Jon Jones vs Chael Sonnen

Before UFC 159, Jon Jones will prepare for his title fight against Chael Sonnen to defend his light heavyweight championship belt. A review of his previous         fights and the strengths and weaknesses that he brings to the match will allow Jones to have an effective pre-fight strategy.

Strengths: Jon Jones is known as one of the most dynamic fighters in MMA, utilizing a mix of striking techniques and powerful takedowns with ease. He has a long reach, allowing him to gain distance while striking his opponents at range. His unpredictable style makes it difficult for opponents to anticipate what moves he may make during fight. He is also known for being able to outlast opponents with higher levels of conditioning if necessary.

Weaknesses: However, many pundits have cited poor defense against leg kicks as one of Jones’ weaknesses; often leaving himself open to strikes when defending or attempting takedowns. He has also seemed rattled at times due to mental errors or trash talk, leading him off balance and causing him to take unnecessary damage from foes attempting comeback wins. Moreover, with recent changes in training camp personnel, there is uncertainty as how this may affect how he interacts within the octagon come fight night come April 27th at UFC 159 in Newark NJ.

Chael Sonnen’s Strengths and Weaknesses

Chael Sonnen has several strengths that could be of advantage against Jon Jones during their fight at UFC 159. He is known for his wrestling prowess, having wrestled in college as an All-American wrestler and placing third in the NCAA championships. He also excels at ground-and-pound techniques and is adept at takedowns. Sonnen has an iron chin with some of the highest strike absorbency rate ever recorded during UFC fights.

Despite these strengths, Chael Sonnen presents some glaring weaknesses as he enters this fight against Jones. His striking ability is limited; success from a standing position relies on his opponent making mistakes or being taken down to the ground where he can use his wrestling skills to his advantage. Additionally, Sonnen has demonstrated poor performance against top-level opponents like Jones and Anderson Silva who have exceptional movement and elusive striking style which undermines the possibility of takedowns or prolonged ground engagement often heavily relied on by wrestlers like Sonnen for victory.

In addition, at 37 years old, advances in age may affect Stamina and speed on fight night creating additional challenge from up-and-coming athletes such as Jon Jones who has excellent physical abilities above that of Chael’s abilities which stands against Sonsen’s advantage with experience in the Octagon.

Fight Analysis

The UFC 159 main event between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen was one of the most highly anticipated fights in recent memory. While Jones was the clear favorite heading into the fight, many analysts expected Sonnen to be his toughest test to date.

In this fight analysis, we will take a look at how the match played out, including the strategies and techniques both fighters employed.

Round-by-Round Breakdown

The ultimate bout between two of the biggest names in mixed martial arts took place on April 27th, 2013. Jon Jones vs Chael Sonnen was one of the most highly anticipated fights of 2013 and certainly did not disappoint. This fight was an incredible battle from start to finish as both fighters put their all into every round. Here’s a closer look at how it all went down.

Round 1: Both fighters came out with big power and impressive speed, but it was Jones who landed the cleaner hits throughout this round. Jones used his size advantage to control the clinch and land effective combinations on Sonnen often. Sonnen’s best moments came when he was able to get close for trips or strikes to the body before being countered again by Jones. After a full five minutes, it clear that Jon Jones gained an early victory in this fight. An extremely close round, ultimately decided by judges giving it to Jones 10-9 (10 being given to the fighter with better success according to three rounds standards).

Round 2: With an obvious scorecard advantage over Sonnen, Jones continued to press his opponent back throughout this round in an aggressive gameplan that included knees and elbows form difficult positions while defending takedowns attempts. After multiple attempts, Sonnen succeeded in taking down Jones but could not capitalize enough on top position as swift get-ups would deny him any real opportunities for extended ground work. Unsurprisingly, the jury gave another 10-9 card for Jon Jones pushing him ahead 2-0 overall before heading into round 3.

Round 3: Despite seemingly being beaten soundly so far in this match up; Chael Sonnen never gave up hope or stopped pressuring forward until the last bell rang. The third and final round saw both men trade heavy shots throughout; even causing a laceration above sonnens right eye mid way through while slowing thin momentum he had gained earlier closed distance better than ever but still failed to properly complete any significant offense due part because of Jones’ strong defense against takedowns as well as superior striking technique comparatively speaking. Judge’s unsurprisingly declared this final round unanimously for Jones allowing for a total fight score of 30 -27 ending in what wound be deemed Jon Jones victory due unanimous decision of judges.

Post-Fight Analysis

The main event of UFC 159 saw UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones (17-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) successfully defend his title against Chael Sonnen (27-13-1 MMA, 6-6 UFC) in a lopsided affair.

Before the fight began, many thought that Sonnen’s ability to slow down fights and use takedowns would play a role in the champion’s strength and power. Unfortunately for Sonnen, these assumptions were proven wrong as Jones used a variety of techniques to dominate the challenger from bell to bell.

At the start of round one, Jones used his leg kicks and long punches to keep distance from Sonnen and ensured that he wouldn’t be taken down easily. His standup game was fluid throughout the rest of rounds one and two as well. With accurate combinations from punches and low kicks, it seemed nearly impossible for Sonnen to get close enough for him to grapple or control the champion in any way.

In round three, an fatigued Sonnen was unable to mount any semblance of offense while also shielding himself from Jones’ strikes whenever possible. Coming into round four, ground game options were becoming desperate for “The American Gangster” as he gradually turned into an easy target for Jones’ punches and kicks until a ground strike halted him completely with him remaining unconscious after numerous hammerfists on April 27th 2013 at 1:17 mins into round four; earning Jones another submission victory via technical knockout on his record superbly displaying his dominance above all other wrestlers in light heavyweight division.