Jon
Jones remains highly confident in his ability.
In a recent interview, the former
Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight and light
heavyweight titleholder weighed in on how he believes a fight
against fellow former two-division king Alex
Pereira and a wrestling match against longtime rival Daniel
Cormier would unfold, backing himself in both scenarios.
Jon Jones explains why he sees grappling as the deciding factor
in a hypothetical fight with Alex Pereira
Jones and Pereira were seemingly on a collision course when the
latter announced his move up to heavyweight for
UFC Freedom 250. However, with Jones' ongoing stalemate with
the UFC regarding his future, a fight against “Poatan†has fallen
through.
Nevertheless, Jones cites size as a key factor at heavyweight,
claiming his former opponents Stipe
Miocic and Ciryl Gane
are bigger than Pereira, who previously competed at 185 pounds.
“I watched Pereira train,†Jones said in an interview with AFL
Global. “I see his level of wrestling and it’s way behind. I feel
as if Stipe Miocic is a true heavyweight. He’s a big, big boy.
Ciryl Gane, when you see him in person, he’s a big, big boy. Alex
Pereira is not a big, big boy. He’s a lean guy. I think right now
he weighs maybe 250.â€
Jones believes his size and grappling would have overwhelmed
Pereira, predicting a submission win had they collided inside the
Octagon.
“I feel as if my physical strength would have been too much for
him,†Jones said. “I felt as if the moment I would have gotten him
to the ground, my submissions would have come pretty quickly. I
mean, everyone knows that. I think that’s the clearest path to
victory for me against Alex Pereira. But we’re not fighting. I am a
fan of him. I support him, and I want to see him do well.â€
“Bones†also discussed his approach towards a potential wrestling
match with Cormier, who he's already shared the cage with
twice.
“I think I would have beat D.C. in a wrestling match,†Jones said.
“It wouldn’t be easy, but I think I would beat him in wrestling. I
hear that he has problems with his back, so my strategy would be to
just try to wear on him. Not shoot, not go for the takedown, but
just hand fight, hand fight, hand fight and see if I could wear on
that back.â€
Merab
Dvalishvili can joke about his low finishing rate in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Dvalishvili is scheduled to challenge Petr Yan for
the bantamweight title in a trilogy bout at
UFC 333 on Oct. 24 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. When a fan
recently asked him to predict the outcome, the former champion
jokingly suggested another decision victory.
Merab Dvalishvili jokes about his decision-heavy record ahead
of Petr Yan title fight at UFC 333
Dvalishvili is known for his relentless pressure and wrestling,
with 16 of his 21 career victories coming by decision. The Georgian
has recorded two finishes in the UFC: a technical knockout of
Marlon
Moraes in 2021 and a submission of Sean
O’Malley in his second title defense last year.
Asked how he would beat Yan, Dvalishvili described himself as a
“decision machine.â€
“There are three ways to win: knockout, submission, or decision,â€
Dvalishvili said in a brief
interview. “I’m a decision machine.â€
A fan asks Merab how he's going to beat
Petr
Yan 👀 “There are three ways to win: knockout, submission, or
decision. I’m a decision machine.” 😂 via: ghassan_elsolh IG
— MMA Pros Pick (@MMA_PROS_PICK_)
October 19, 2026
Movsar
Evloev rejects the notion that fans only want bloody
fights.
Evloev is scheduled to challenge Alexander
Volkanovski for the
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight title at
UFC 333 on Oct. 24 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The Russian
challenger has won all 10 of his UFC bouts by decision but believes
fans appreciate his fighting style.
Movsar Evloev argues wrestling can entertain UFC fans ahead of
Volkanovski title fight
The recent departures of Michael
Page and Farid
Basharat have fueled debate about whether winning is enough to
secure a new UFC contract. Neither fighter was re-signed despite a
winning streak, though a lack of finishes has not been established
as the reason for either departure.
Evloev believes finishes are not the only measure of a fighter's
value. He says fans also appreciate tactics, skill and
wrestling.
“I have zero finishes in UFC, but I'm still in the UFC and I'm
fighting for the title,†Evloev told MMA Fighting. “That means only
finishes are not important. To show a good fight is also important.
If you have no finish, you can still show a good fight, an exciting
fight; you can show the beauty of wrestling. There are not just
fans of MMA who just wait for blood. There are so many good fans
who know MMA, and they understand, and maybe because of them I'm
still in the UFC.â€
#UFC333’s Movsar
Evloev credits fans with his being in the UFC despite having
zero finishes: “There is not just fans of MMA who just wait for
blood. There are so many good fans who know MMA, and they
understand, and maybe because of them I'm still in the UFC.” (🎥
@JoseYoungs) https://t.co/cvpUBVusyb
Muhammad Mokaev knows how it feels to win in the octagon and still lose with the UFC.
In 2024, Mokaev experienced a similar rift despite having zero losses on his record, and he is now taking aim at White and the UFC's practices in defense of Basharat.
“When fighters are getting phone calls from bosses telling them, ‘If you keep wrestling like that, you're going to get cut,' then you're basically telling fighters how you want them to fight,†Mokaev wrote on Twitter. “At what point does that cross the line? Isn't that influencing the competition?
“And if you want to release a fighter, fine. But don't then publicly say he was ‘hard to deal with' or create some bullshit narrative about him that could damage his reputation and make other organizations think twice about signing him. Release fighters if you want. Just don't try to damage their careers on the way out.â€
Like Basharat, Mokaev employed a wrestling-heavy style that didn't always produce thrilling back-and-forth contests (though Mokaev did score submission victories in four of his seven UFC wins). The nail in the coffin for Mokaev was a disappointing decision win over Manel Kape at UFC 304, where both men produced little meaningful offense. Making matters worse, Mokaev and Kape had an altercation during fight week, with Mokaev admitting he threw the first punch.
Mokaev is 4-0 since parting ways with the UFC, having finished three of his past four opponents, but remains on the outside looking in with his competition going mostly unrecognized by fans in North America. The 26-year-old is currently No. 7 at 125 pounds in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings.