Glover Teixeira confident Jon Jones’ fighting style ‘great’ for heavyweight

Glover Teixeira shared the cage with Jon Jones eight years ago for the UFC’s 205-pound title, and now expects the former light heavyweight king to find success in his new division.

As a man who bounced back from his 2014 loss to Jones and ultimately became the UFC champion, Teixeira feels “Bones” has the ideal fighting style to compete among heavier opposition, starting with his UFC 285 clash with Ciryl Gane for the vacant title.

“There are some fights you can say, ‘Oh, he lost this one, it was close,’ like the ones with [Thiago Santos] and Dominick Reyes, but he suffered no damage,” Teixeira told MMA Fighting during an interview provided by his sponsor Stake. “He hasn’t done much, but he didn’t get hit much either.

“I think that’s a great style for heavyweight because he doesn’t get hit often, doesn’t make mistakes to get countered. He’s more cautious in terms of not getting hit and coming out unscathed, and I think he’s winning the decision.”

Jones finished most of his opponents early in his UFC career before going on a run of decisions, Teixeira included. “Bones” stopped Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson in rematches before more decisions versus Anthony Smith, Santos, and Reyes.

It remains to be seen how Jones will perform at heavyweight, and Teixeira wonders if Jones “might get tired” carrying that extra weight.

“I think Jon Jones’ wrestling is going to make the difference,” he said. “He studies the fights a lot, especially the last ones at light heavyweight, and can end the fight at any moment, but he goes to a decision a lot.”