UFC 145 Fight Card: Jon Jones Will Prove Unstoppable If Rashad Evans Can't Win

When Jon Jones faces Rashad Evans on Saturday at UFC 145, he won't be fighting just Evans—he will be taking on the last hurdle separating him from total domination of the light heavyweight division.

Jones' meteoric rise to the top of his division is unlike anything we have ever seen in the sport.

Sure, there have been fighters that have taken the UFC by storm—Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida and even Jones' UFC 145 opponent Rashad Evans come to mind—fighters who have come onto the scene and looked invincible on their way to claiming UFC gold.

What sets Jones apart is his domination of opponents at such a young age.

After earning back-to-back unanimous-decision victories in his first two fights with the organization,   Jones has done nothing but finish opponents (excluding his disqualification loss to Matt Hamill for throwing illegal 12-6 elbows—a fight Jones was dominating).

Since entering the UFC, Jones has faced a steady escalation of challenges.

One by one, Jones has passed every one with flying colors.

Jones' latest test, against former champion Lyoto Machida, answered perhaps one of the biggest questions we had about Jones: What happens when he gets clipped?

Machida became the first person to "catch" Jones—landing a solid blow that dazed him briefly in the first round.

How did Jones react? By dragging Machida to the mat in the second round and changing the fight by opening up a cut. Jones ended the round with a standing guillotine that made Machida his third opponent in four fights to be subdued.

In Evans, Jones faces perhaps his last legitimate test in the light heavyweight division.

If anyone can beat Jones, it should be Evans.

One of the greatest challenges in beating Jones is preparing for him. There aren't many fighters in the world that possess the freakish frame of Jones—let alone the skills to match. Finding a sparring partner who can simulate Jones is next to impossible.

Evans' advantage of having years of training with Jones can't be understated. If there are any holes in Jones' game, Evans knows them.

Anytime Jones has been paired with a wrestler, he has always come out on top. He has utilized his strong clinch game to throw opponents to the ground and used his vicious ground and pound to establish his dominance.

No one has been able to out-grapple Jones and put him on his back. If anyone has the credentials to do that, it's Evans.

At UFC 145, we may see Jones on his back for the first time.

If Jones passes the test of Evans, what is left for him?

If Jones can't be beaten by a guy who has the best chance to take him down, the power to put him in trouble with one strike, and a fighter that knows him better than anyone else, who can?

Jones' detractors will be quick to point to Dan Henderson as a legitimate threat to the title. However, Henderson would be wise to use his title shot on a rematch with Anderson Silva—who isn't bringing anything to the table that Evans doesn't.

Make no mistake, Henderson is a great fighter—one of the most accomplished athletes in the sport— but Jones is on another level. Henderson will, of course, always have the potential to land his infamous "H-Bomb," but a puncher's chance is all he will have against Jones.

After Henderson, the man that could threaten Jones' potential title is Alexander Gustafsson.

The Swedish Gustafsson has a tremendous future in the sport and is certainly promising, but he would come in as a huge underdog against Jones. As impressive as Gustafsson is, Jones has accomplished far more and is a year younger.

Gustafsson still has a loss to Phil Davis on his record, and he hasn't been tested by a truly explosive wrestler since that fight. Jones is as explosive as they come, with far better striking than Davis.

Gustafsson has plenty of time to develop, and the division will surely produce more challengers in the future to offer a test for Jones.

The scary thing is that Jones continues to improve. Every time Jones enters the octagon, it appears that he is a better version than the Jones that fought previously. Part of that constant improvement is Jones' attitude toward his legacy.

Often classified as being cocky, he is fully aware of his vast potential.

With his explosive skill set, youth, and personality, he knows he could become the sport's first truly mainstream star. He wants to be remembered as the greatest fighter of all time, and he isn't afraid to share his vision.

To begin building that legacy, Jones must first have a title reign similar to what Anderson Silva's in the middleweight division— nine title defenses in six years as the division champion.

Jones is looking beyond just dominating one division. He wants to eventually take fights at heavyweight.

While it appears that Jones' foreseeable future is in the light-heavyweight division, a win over Evans will set Jones' up for a very lengthy reign as champion. In fact, the only thing likely to stop that reign will be Jones deciding that he is ready to make the move to heavyweight full time.

The lone caveat to Jones' domination is the presence of Evans as a legitimate threat. If he is able to get past his most notable nemesis, he will be unstoppable for a long time.