UFC on Versus 2: Jon Jones vs. Vladimir Matyushenko

	VERSUS
Jon Jones		Vladimir Matyushenko

Here it is folks, the main event of the evening. This card, like the first Versus UFC card, features Jon "Bones" Jones in the main event, but this time he'll be taking on thirteen year mixed martial-arts veteran Vladimir Matyushenko. Jon Jones, since his debut fight against Andre Gusmao, has been the talk of the proverbial town. He's widely considered the best young fighter in the UFC, if not the world, and will look to impress further. He's coming off a very impressive fight with Brandon Vera, where he unleashed his vicious elbows, and subsequently fractured Vera's orbital bone. Matyushenko is in his second stint with the UFC, and has been nothing but successful thus far, with wins against Igor Pokrajac and Eliot Marshall. He has also won 11 out of his last 12 fights, a streak spanning three years. This fight is a changing of the guard, passing of the torch, etc.

As mentioned, Jon Jones is one of the most highly thought of young fighters in the world, reeling off four wins in his UFC career, with his sole loss coming from a disqualification against Matt Hamill. The fight with Matt Hamill, despite the "illegal blows," was dominated by Jones in every facet. Jones presents a very big challenge for the whole of the Light Heavyweight division, due to his length, strength, and unorthodox nature. He's an outstanding Greco-Roman wrestler, who brutalizes his opponents in the clinch. He's also is very dangerous on the feet using muay thai strikes, coming from very awkward and unorthodox deliveries. As was seen in his past few fights, his ability to take fighters down is excellent. In his fight with Brandon Vera, he immediately tied him up, and tripped him, and began to rain down elbows before the referee intervened.

Jones is the new type of fighter that has emerged, where they come into the game really young, being well-rounded rather than having a strong base in one aspect of the game. While the greats like Matt Hughes, Royce Gracie, and Tito Ortiz, all came into the fight game with a set base and strength, the young guys like Jon Jones and Evan Dunham are so well-versed in both stand-up and grappling, to the point where they're comfortable wherever the fight goes. Jon Jones' key to winning this fight lies in his ability to keep Matyushenko at a distance and picking him apart. If it does hit the ground, expect it to be Jones on top after tripping Matyushenko.

"The Janitor" Vladimir Matyushenko has cleaned up in his two return fights to the UFC. He's ground out decision wins against Igor Pokrajac and youngster Eliot Marshall. He's an ace on the ground and has great takedowns. He will need to quickly close the distance against the youngster, and try to tie him up and take him down whilst avoiding the throw from Jones. He has a very tough road ahead of him, and as was mentioned before, will likely be passing the torch onto the 23 year old Rochester native. If he can keep Jones on his back, he could pull of the win, but don't bet the house on it.

Jones will prove to be way too much in any facet of the game for Matyushenko. He'll likely frustrate the Belarusian no matter where the fight goes. If Matyushenko tries to shoot, look for the knee, or a clinch that results in Jones throwing or tripping his opponent. This is the old fighter giving way to the new true mixed martial artist, and pushing Jones that much further up the ladder in his quest for Mauricio "Shogun" Rua's 205lb crown. Expect Jones to use the aforementioned trip to end the fight like he did against Brandon Vera, using his elbows and ground and pound.

Prediction - Jon Jones by 2nd round (t)ko