Winklejohn On Why Jones Beats Smith At UFC 235

Anthony Smith walks into his first UFC pay-per-view main event on March 2nd, when he faces Jon Jones for the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 235.

Running through the likes of Maurício Rua, Rashad Evans, and Volkan Oezdemir, Smith has set himself up to be the top contender for Jones in his third reign as 205 pound champion/

“Tough. Just big b***s to keep going. He has the ability to come back, I think the scariest thing about him is just that. As you saw in his last fight with Volkan (Oezdemir), he was behind in my mind, but he knows how to survive and find the right time to do something. I think he started hurting him with body shots and then he had the takedown there at the end,” said Jones’ striking coach, Mike Winkeljohn on a recent appearance on The MMA Hour.

“I think it’s his ability, his mental toughness to survive and overcome that’s his greatest strength.”

“[Smith]’s good at a lot of things. It’s his depth and his long range punches, the problem with that is that Jon’s even longer,” Winklejohn continued. “He has the ability to throw punches at different times, his straight right hand is really, really effective especially in his counter mode against Jon. That’s what I’m worried about. And then he takes people down, there’s no doubt about it,” said Jones’ coach.

“I just think he’s going to have a hard night against Jon Jones, because I think Jon’s better everywhere. But I think his boxing skills are very tight. If I thought anything was going to be scary, it would be that. He’s definitely great everywhere, so we have to be on our toes, but he’s got to deal with Jon’s length and Jon’s ability to adapt.”

Initial Report: MMA Fighting