Rashad Evans against Jon Jones should be a fantastic duel, but it’s really difficult for anyone to pick against Jones right now. The big factor is trying to get in and get past the reach and elusiveness of Jones. The big-man is able to keep his opponents away with his 84.5 inch jab as well as more creative striking like front kicks to his opponent’s knee to hyper-extend them. Both the jab and kick were able to stifle the offense of Quinton Rampage Jackson when the two tangled at UFC 135–and that’s saying a lot. Rampage Jackson has a very aggressive boxing attack and is fearless in utilizing it. He rushes forward with no hesitation and for Rampage to be cautious in pressing the attack shows the effectiveness of Jones. Evans isn’t going to be easy to take down or hold down for that matter, but at some point I see it happening with the athleticism and wrestling skill of Jones. It’s going to be a tough task for Evans to put Jones on his back and hit him with strikes, so that pretty much makes for a useless offense for a fighter because if Jones gets on top of his opponents, his BJJ is smooth and his strikes and submissions very dangerous. Jones will likely use a similar strategy to the one he used against Rampage in avoiding getting into a slugfest with his opponent and picking his spots to strike strategically. Additionally, Jones will be more cautious about defending takedowns. If you take the strategic approach to fighting, as most Greg Jackson fighters effectively do on route to victory, it makes sense for Jones to put Evans on his back. The big chance Evans has in this fight is if he can start boxing with Jones in close and start tagging him with some big shots a-la his bout with Tito Ortiz. Evans can certainly take a punch and has the heart of a lion, both those tools should keep this fight interesting, but it’s hard to bet against the Jon Jones era crashing down at this point.