Jones: Anything Shogun can do, I can do better
“When (Shogun) says he’s fought Overeem? Me and Overeem have similarities in being tall. I think I’m taller than Overeem….
“When (Shogun) says he’s fought Overeem? Me and Overeem have similarities in being tall. I think I’m taller than Overeem. I know that my arms are longer. I think my strength could match to Overeem to where Overeem was in that point in his career. I look at myself as an Overeem with better wrestling, and better jiu-jitsu, and more unpredictable style.”
I always thought (Shogun) was vicious, brutal, and mean. He was kicking people in the face, aggressive, and he was the first person I watched. I thought hopefully I’ll fight him one day, and it came to pass. I never looked up to Shogun though. He was just the first fighter I got into once I got into the sport. Second came Anderson Silva and once I caught a breath of him, I totally forgot about Shogun and totally become obsessed with Anderson Silva. But I just remember, wow, this guy Shogun, he won the PRIDE Grand Prix championship and he’s only 23. That motivated me and showed me that it’s all possible.
I think being remembered for standing for something is a lot more important than just for a cool move that you did. Right now I’m standing up for Christ, and if I find something that I’m passionate about as I learn more about myself and the world, I definitely want to step up and help. Being great is one thing, but being remembered is another thing. To be great, magnificent and remembered, you have to stand for something and change the world in a way. I want to change the world. Ali stood up for the Muslims and for not going to war and he made an impact. People don’t remember Bruce Lee as that Asian guy. No one cares that Bruce Lee was Asian, they love him all over the world, and I want to have that same impact. I don’t want me being African-American to ever play a difference in anyone’s mind. I don’t want anyone saying ‘I like that black fighter.’ I want people to love me because of me. I’d rather be known as that Christian fighter or that peaceful fighter or that fighter that’s spreading positivity and kindness and confidence and way more than tactics. It’s important.
For everyone who says I’ve never been hit and is wondering how I’ll react to it, the reason why I haven’t been hit is because I’m literally obsessed with what I’m doing and I’m in the gym every day, three times a day, six hours a day. And when you dedicate your life to it, hopefully you guys will never see me do the chicken dance. That’s the way it works. But for people who are wondering how I’ll react, I’ve been hit several times throughout practice and I react just fine. I’ve been dazed in wrestling – I remember a few times in high school I would throw people and land on my own head and almost knock myself out, but I kept wrestling through it. So I’ve seen those white flashes before and I’ve always fought through it. If it happens in this fight, I’m definitely prepared to fight through it and I know I can fight through it.
I envision me going out there, fighting my fight, keeping my hands high, exchanging punches with him, taking kicks, and kicking him right back just as hard. I can see myself taking him down at will, even worse than I did Stephan Bonnar. I could see myself submitting him on the ground, I could see myself being way overwhelming and just way too much on top. I don’t think he’s ever fought someone who’s gonna throw leg kicks at him, and basically anything he can do, I feel that I can do better. I’m young, I’m hungry, and Shogun’s smart and a great fighter, but I just feel that there’s nothing he can do that I can’t. I can throw an overhand right, I can swing for the fences, and I can throw a leg kick just like he can throw a leg kick. There’s really nothing that he has that I don’t besides a black belt, and when it comes to that black belt, I want to show that hard work and dedication and just believing can overcome any type of black belt.