Jon Jones happy to prove himself on big stage

By Andy Samuelson

Monday, Feb. 9, 2009 | 2 a.m.

The kid has a sense of humor, too.

After recording the biggest win in his young mixed martial arts career a little more than a week ago at UFC 94, 21-year-old Jon Jones joked with a reporter who asked him if he “could suplex God?”

“No, not ready to do that quite yet,” the New York native said, after first mimicking classic Bruce Lee hand movements and puckering his lips.

Members of the media gathered at the postfight press conference laughed.

Somewhere inside the MGM Grand, UFC veteran Stephan Bonnar did not.

On a night that saw UFC welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre dominate lightweight champ B.J. Penn, then have to deal with the ‘Grease-Gate’ accusations afterward -- as well as Lyoto Machida secure his name on the top of the heap of light heavyweight title contenders with his stunning knockout of previously unbeaten Thiago Silva -- Jones’ thrilling victory over Bonnar kind of got lost in the shuffle.

OK, so not everybody forgot about the explosive fireworks the little-known Jones unveiled.

There was the clip of UFC commentator and funnyman Joe Rogan telling Jones what a performance he put on, which was posted on UFC President Dana White’s video blog.

“You’ve got some of the best throws in MMA,” Rogan said. “Your timing on those throws is sick ... Big victory tonight. Stephan Bonnar is legit.”

So, too, seems the 6-foot-4, 220-pound (walk around weight) native of Rochester, N.Y., who ran his MMA record to 8-0. Five of his bouts he’s ended by knockout.

It’s not like Bonnar is a pushover. White basically credits Bonnar and former light heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin for saving the UFC because of their back-and-forth bloodbath on the finals of the first season of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

“Yes, I’m definitely satisfied with my performance,” said Jones, a former New York state wrestling champ and junior college national champion. “A lot of my game plan was really to utilize my main strength, which I don’t think is a secret, my Greco-Roman wrestling. I have put lots of time in, years of camps and all these different clubs.

“I don’t think that you’re going to train your Greco skills for a training camp and be able to stop my takedowns.”

But the bigger problem for Bonnar seemed to be Jones’ unorthodox strikes, which included a spinning elbow in the second round that floored Bonnar to the canvas, nearly knocking him out for the first time in his career.

Jones — who comes from an athletic family, as his two brothers are defensive linemen at Syracuse University — said in a recent interview he picked up most of his striking game via the Internet.

“YouTube videos can really teach you a lot. It depends how you search for them. If you look really hard, you can find videos of seminars from some of the best fighters in the world,” Jones told SI.com’s Ben Fowlkes. “It's just a matter of taking them seriously.”

For Bonnar — who before losing to Jones, had only lost to Machida and former champs Griffin and Rashad Evans — Jones said he was most serious. He even hired a striking coach for the first time.

“I went online and watched a couple of his fights. I really focused on the fights that he lost, saw him at his weakest moments, and it inspired me to think that I could be better than him,” Jones said in his interview with SI.com.

“I dedicated my life to Stephan Bonnar. I knew how he moved. I knew his tendencies. I just became obsessed with him, and it paid off.”

Jones said a spiritual move also paid big dividends. He and his fiancée moved away from his hometown of Endicott, N.Y., and into the woods, “so I’m just out there with God and reality.”

It's a move the man who goes by the nickname of “Bones” said shows just how serious he is about the new sport he picked up less than a year ago.

“I do this for my family, I do this to be a provider,” Jones said. “I know with the UFC you have to win to stay in. I knew I was a huge underdog. I went in there with a mission and I had to get the job done.

“I believe that I’m one of the top fighters and can be a top contender. I know I’m young in my career and I really don’t have the right to say that yet, but fighting him is going to prove I belong here.”

Andy Samuelson can be reached at [email protected] or 702-948-7837.