UFC: Jones vs Reyes Preview, Odds & Prediction

The UFC will once again take centre stage this weekend, as UFC 247 comes live from the Toyota Centre in Houston. The main event will see the undefeated Dominick Reyes take on the irrepressible Jon Jones, in what should be one of the most entertaining fights of the year.

The undercard is also stacked with high-quality action with Katlyn Chookagian taking on Valentina Shevchenko, and Justin Tafa taking on Juan Adams. But, there is no doubting that all UFC fans are looking forward to the main event with the most anticipation.

Big Fight Preview

It would seem as though Jon Jones has been in the headlines for every reason except his MMA skills over recent years. He has been suspended on three separate occasions since his victory over Daniel Cormier. Those failed tests have threatened to devalue everything that Jones has achieved throughout his UFC career, but in 2018 he came back looking better than ever. On his first night back at UFC 232 he won the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight Championship by beating Alexander Gustafsson.

That third-round victory set up a first defence of the title against Anthony Smith at UFC 235. Jones was dominant throughout, but the scorecards were effected by his points deduction, which meant that he only won the fight via unanimous decision. He managed to keep hold of his title once again at UFC 239 by defeating Thiago Santos by split decision. However, Dominick Reyes presents a very real threat to his title reign.

Reyes has been quietly going under the radar since signing with UFC in 2017, and this will be his first main event slot on a big card of action. However, his record shows that he is a force to be reckoned with, as he has won all 12 matches in MMA action. His first UFC bout came against Joachim Christensen, and he won by TKO.

In his six UFC bouts, he has only been taken the distance on two occasions. The remainder of his fights have been won by brutal KO or TKO punches. He also has one submission victory to his name, after he made Jeremy Kimball tap out to the real-naked choke at UFC 218. His last victory came in October last year, as he knocked off Chris Weirdman within one round. That showing saw him win his second Performance of the Night accolade in UFC. However, he remains the outsider with BetXChange to beat Jones this weekend.

Tale Of The Tape

Prediction

Reyes has done extremely well to get to this point, but it would be incredibly hard to look past the reigning champion to defend the gold. Jones has the reach advantage, which will be hugely detrimental to Reyes’ chances of knocking Jones out. Jones has shown throughout his career that he is able to beat the best, and this will just be another example of his prowess.

Tip: Jon Jones at 0.18 with BetXChange.