“That’s simple, man: I’m Dominick Reyes,” he said. “I was born in Apple Valley, California. My upbringing was completely different than anybody he’s ever faced. I’m a lifelong athlete playing multiple sports — baseball, football, wrestling, track — and I excelled in all of them and now I’m excelling in MMA.”
The matchup between Jones and Reyes is incredibly appealing and the interplay between the two on stage on Friday evening flipped the switch on the countdown clock tracking the days, hours and minutes until they will hit the Octagon in Houston.
Since returning to action a year ago, Jones has maintained a desire to “make up for lost time” and reward the fans that stood by him through his various issues outside of the cage by fighting frequently and he made good on that promise in 2019.
Jumping back into the cage with a less established, but dangerous talent like Reyes continues that trend, and while the challenger is confident he’s the one to finally unseat the Albuquerque-based champion, Jones believes the outcome will be the same as the last two times he’s shared the cage with an undefeated opponent.
“I do feel like Dominick has everything to win in this situation — he’s relatively unknown — but that’s why I’m training as hard as I can,” said Jones. “I’m taking him extremely seriously. Because he’s unknown, people would expect me to take him lightly, but that’s how guys in my position would fall.
“I’m taking you serious, but you’re a pawn in this game,” he said to Reyes when the challenge suggested he would leave him lying on the canvas. “You’re just a piece in the puzzle. I’m trying to be great and you’re just a part of it. Everyone is undefeated before they fight me. Daniel Cormier was undefeated. Ryan Bader was undefeated.”
“What does Daniel Cormier have to do with me?” questioned Reyes. “What does Ryan Bader have to do with me?”
“You not special, Dominick,” Jones answered.
“Oh, I am The One; I promise you,” the challenger quickly fired back. “You’ll see.”
We’ll all see in 57 days in Houston, Texas.