UFC 247: Jon Jones Squeaks by Dominick Reyes

Jon Jones defended the light-heavyweight title tonight at UFC 247, but the bout could have been scored for Dominick Reyes.

Round one

Both men came out aggressively and Jones had a takedown shut down. Reyes winged some big shots as Jones pressed forward. Reyes tagged Jones with a nice left that put him on the floor momentarily. Jones recovered and fired back some strikes, but Reyes continued to throw shots of his own. Jones threatened with a couple of head kicks late in the frame. Replay showed that Reyes put Jones on the mat as he was off balance, and via a punch to his chest.

Round two

Reyes came with a hard flurry not long into round two, but it didn’t look like Jones ate too many of the shots. Jones started kicking to the thigh and or knee. Jones picked up his pace and pressuring later in the round. Reyes planted a nice left in the final minute of the round, and he planted a hard kick moments later.

Round three

Reyes chucked some big shots to begin round three and while Jones defended well, he didn’t offer much in return. Jones continued to fire kicks to the legs of Reyes. Jones shot in with a couple of minutes in but Reyes squashed the TD. Jones pressed forward in the final minutes and right before it ended, he missed with a flying knee.

Round four

Jones shot in early into the frame, but was unable to keep Reyes down for more than moment. Jones came hunting for a takedown not long after, but Reyes defended. Jones continued to press forward, and Reyes’ output diminished. Jones planted a hard left hook right before the round ended.

Round five

Reyes came out firing shots and Jones countered with a takedown. Reyes quickly popped back to his feet, and Jones continued to move forward.  Reyes  looked to counter but Jones continued to offer more output. Jones winged in kicks in the final minute but none of them found their mark.

Here are the results from UFC 247, which took place in Houston, Texas.

Jon Jones def. Dominick Reyes via unanimous decision (48-47 48-47, 49-46)
Valentina Shevchenko def. Katlyn Chookagian via TKO (punches) R3, 1:03
Justin Tafa def. Juan Adams via TKO (punches) R1, 1:59
Dan Ige def. Mirsad Bektic via split decision (29-28, 228-29, 29-28)
Derrick Lewis def. Ilir Latifi via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Trevin Giles def. James Krause via split decision(29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Lauren Murphy def. Andrea Lee via unanimous decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Kalinn Williams def. Alex Morono via TKO (punches) R1, 0:27
Mario Bautista def. Miles Johns via TKO (strikes) R2, 1:41
Youssef Zalal def. Austin Lingo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Andre Ewell def. Jonathan Martinez via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Journey Newson def. Domingo Pilarte via TKO (punches) R1, 0:38