Alexander Gustafsson
Alexander Gustafsson came into his title fight with Jon Jones at UFC 165 as a heavy underdog, with ‘Bones’ being a seemingly indestructable force at the time who had yet to be fully tested in the Octagon, despite already having fought many of the biggest stars in the division.
However, ‘The Mauler’ would prove to be a worthy adversary and was soon finding a home for his punches in a way that had never been seen before against Jones, even opening up a cut near his eye in the opening round and also taking him down too.
The rounds that followed saw the two men fighting blow-for-blow as the bout veered towards instant-classic status and set up a thrilling finale for the championship rounds as fans dared to believe that Gustafsson could deliver an all-time great upset.
It was a true test of Jones’ championship mettle and one he would pass as he began to step up a gear and hurt Gustafsson late in the fourth round, and though Gustafsson continued to stay competitive until the final bell, ‘Bones’ had the bigger moments and that would help lead him to a unanimous decision victory.
The result of the fight has been heavily debated since, but most media outlets did score it in Jones favor and the Fightmetric stats agreed. Nonetheless, there was disappointment that an immediate rematch didn’t come to fruition, though they would clash again five years later in a bout Jones would win by TKO.
