Jon Jones (black shorts) competes against Chael Sonnen (white shorts) during UFC 159 at the Prudential Center(Photo Brad Penner USA TODAY Sports)
It's fitting that in Jon Jones' 13 UFC fights and five successful title defenses his worst injury should be one he inflicted upon himself.
It's also fitting that Jones (18 1 mixed martial arts 12 1 UFC) was too busy elbowing challenger Chael Sonnen (27 13 1 6 6) in the face at UFC 159 in Newark N.J. on Saturday to notice just how mangled his left big toe was until after his post fight victory celebration.
That's when the light heavyweight champ looked down and saw that one of his toes was no longer pointing in the same direction as the others.
UFC 159 Jones dominates Sonnen to retain title
It didn't hurt at all Jones said. After the fight I looked down and saw blood. I looked closer at the blood and saw my toe was pretty much upside down.
Or as UFC President Dana White put it His bone was sticking out of his toe.
Jones 25 who is rapidly cementing his position as the best 205 pounder in UFC history seemed equally sickened and bemused by the discovery. A replay showed his toe giving out under his own weight as he pushed off his left foot to continue his assault on Sonnen. Considering the undersized overmatched challengers the UFC has been providing him lately it makes sense that the biggest threat to Jones' health these days is Jones himself.
It's been a year since Jones last defended his title against a true light heavyweight. After his decision win against former champ Rashad Evans a year ago he submitted middleweight Vitor Belfort in September and nearly broke his arm in the process. Next the UFC gave him Sonnen whose last bout was a failed bid for Anderson Silva's UFC middleweight title but whose reputation as a relentless self promoter promised a profitable outing on pay per view.
That's fine for the organization's bottom line but it doesn't do much for Jones' legacy. He entered Saturday's bout as a 10 1 favorite according to oddsmakers. Sonnen vowed to plant him on his back and beat a hole in his face but instead it was Jones who did the planting and the beating. The only thing Sonnen could do was lie there and bleed.
This shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone who has seen either man in action. Sonnen might be a workhorse of a middleweight but Jones is a spectacular light heavyweight. He might be the best we've ever seen though it's hard to tell when the UFC puts him in barely competitive matchups for the sake of PPV sales. Now according to White Jones' toe injury will likely delay a potential showdown with legitimate light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson (15 1 7 1) who Jones has said he'd like to face next.
That's the problem with wasting Jones' talent on fighters such as Sonnen. Even if his opponents can't hurt him that's no guarantee he'll emerge unscathed and ready for a challenge that might actually tell us how great he can be.
PHOTOS UFC 159 Jones vs. Sonnen
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