Marcus Jones' future

BJJ Beginner · 11-05-2009, 09:49 AM

What do you guys think of Marcus's future in the UFC?

On the plus side, he's ridiculously strong and athletic and has a very slick ground game for a heavyweight along with obvious knockout power. On the other hand, his earlier fights showed some pretty sloppy standup technique and while he may have improved since then, we have yet to see any evidence of it. In addition, his chin and cardio are both questionable, although one quick knockout loss doesn't prove anything and it's hard to say anything about his cardio considering he had a staph infection going into the show and we don't know how long he had been training before we saw him gassing during workouts. Also, while his strength is likely a G&P/submission game, his ability to actually take the fight to the ground is unknown. Most importantly, due to his age and the accumulated abuse his body took in the NFL, he likely only has a few years at the most in which to improve his skills.

Personally, I think this guy would have been an absolute beast if he had gotten into the sport at an earlier age. Even now, while I don't see him ever being a top heavyweight contender, I think he could become a solid mid-level fighter in the division and put on some entertaining bouts. His size, strength, and punching power are sufficient to give smaller but more skilled opponents problems, and while he's no Nog or Mir, his BJJ is better than most in that weightclass. I could see him reaching Kongo-like status - a decent fighter who feeds on lesser heavyweights but doesn't have the skill set to compete with the elite in the division.

RH!NO · 11-05-2009, 10:58 AM

He'll be a gatekeeper. His age could hurt him. I was very impressed with his TUF fight though.

Misplaced · 11-05-2009, 11:03 AM

He seems like a real nice guy and I wish him the best, however I think he came into the sport 10years too late, he'll probably win his next fight and still get signed for a few fights in the ufc, but I don't see him breaking into even a top 25 HW.

TheJiggaNasty · 11-05-2009, 11:11 AM

I don't think he'll ever break into the top ten, but I hope I'm wrong. I think he's the real winner of this season of "TUF" reguardless is he wins or loses. People including myself seem to love and cheer for the gentle giant, and he'll have a hell of a fan base. Has far has MMA I doubt he could beat anybody in the top 10 right now, but the guy has a lot of passion and determination for MMA so anything could happen with time.

TheJiggaNasty · 11-05-2009, 11:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RH!NO

He'll be a gatekeeper. His age could hurt him. I was very impressed with his TUF fight though.

Not the age, but the pre-existing injuries from the NFL will prevent him from having a long MMA career. He only play 6 season in the NFL for a reason, but injuries get everybody in football.

TheJiggaNasty · 11-05-2009, 11:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Misplaced

He seems like a real nice guy and I wish him the best, however I think he came into the sport 10years too late, he'll probably win his next fight and still get signed for a few fights in the ufc, but I don't see him breaking into even a top 25 HW.

Yeah, but he was a First round pick with a Superbowl winning team. Now he's doing MMA, and he's got a rather big fanbase including myself. I think his timing is perfect.

Sebchenier · 11-05-2009, 11:24 AM

I really like his attitude and devotion to the sport. He respects his opponents yet is able to turn the switch when the fight starts.

In terms of his physical skills, his standup still seems raw. However that armbar was textbook and unless it was because Mike has a weak ground game (which I doubt because he is a veteran of the sport) I think it's safe to say he's got a UFC level ground game. His sheer size, strength and athleticism should allow him to propel him to a mid level fighter. It all depends on how the UFC will use him. I could see him losing to some fighters such as Cheick Kongo, Hardonk, Mir, Dos Santos, Duffee... I could see him beating some good fighters like Heath Herring and Coleman

Robbo420 · 11-05-2009, 11:26 AM

i hope he does well, he reminds me of bob sapp in the the longest yard remake.lol

ShoelessRye · 11-05-2009, 11:35 AM

He's 36 years old - he has no real future. He might get a couple of fights in the UFC, but he came to the sport too late in the game.

I have to wonder though, playing in the NFL for eight years and being a first round pick, I assume he has more money than Shad and rampage?

Dead tired · 11-05-2009, 11:35 AM

I hope he does well, seems to learn very fast which is a must at his age! I would love to see his goofy ass put a crazy run together and challenge for the title.