Jones vs. Evans: Keys to 'Suga' Upsetting Bones for UFC Light Heavyweight Title

After losing to Lyoto Machida in 2009, Rashad Evans has been a different fighter in his past several bouts and he is on a major roll. He now has his sights set on Jon "Bones" Jones and his UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, and he will have the chance to take it from him at UFC 145 tonight.

The 24-year-old Jones has been nearly flawless over the course of his career with a record of 15-1. His only loss was by disqualification, so many still consider him an unblemished fighter.

He is ranked as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world by several pundits as well, so there is no doubt that Evans has his work cut out for him.

Jones is a pretty heavy favorite in this fight, but that doesn't mean that Evans is going to go home with his tail between his legs. Evans is likely the toughest competition Jones has faced to this point, but here are three things he absolutely must do if he wants to have any chance of dethroning the champion.

Eliminate Space

Competing with Jones is incredibly tough because he has so many weapons. Jones has won by pretty much every way possible during his 16-fight career, but it's fair to say that he is at his most dangerous as a striker.

Eight of Jones' 15 career wins have come via knockout as he has fast hands and perhaps the most educated feet in the sport. When Jones connects with one of his signature kicks to the head, his opponent is most likely going to end up on the mat and will probably be seeing stars.

One way to combat that is to keep everything at close quarters. If Jones doesn't have any room to move his arms or legs, then Evans won't be able to get hit with anything forceful enough to hurt him.

Without proper extension, Jones won't be unleashing any of his lethal kicks, and that eliminates a major part of his arsenal. Jones will still have plenty of other options, but if Evans clutches and grabs for much of the fight, then it will play into his favor.

Keep Jones Grounded

No matter what type of predicament a fighter has Jones in over the course of a fight, that fighter can never feel safe. With that said, though, the best way to neutralize Jones' offense is to keep him grounded.

If Evans does that, he won't exactly be out of the woods as Jones has five career submission victories, but as long as he plays things cautiously and intelligently, he should be able to avoid major damage. Getting Jones to the mat and keeping him there is obviously a lot easier said than done, though.

Jones has about a five-inch height advantage on Evans, so it will be extremely tough for Evans to combat all of the limbs that are sure to be flying at him.

Evans is considered to be one of the strongest fighters in UFC regardless of weight class, though, and although it's tough to measure, most would probably say that he holds the edge on Jones in that regard.

If he can bog Jones down and keep him on the canvas, it won't make for an exciting fight, but it will limit Jones' explosiveness.

Go the Distance

The odds of Evans knocking out Jones or forcing him to tap out are quite slim in my estimation, so Evans has to do everything he can to take this fight the distance. Jones has only gone all three rounds twice in his career, while Evans has done so 10 times with a mark of 9-0-1 in those bouts.

There is no question that Evans knows how to impress the judges and grind out victories on the scorecards, and that is undoubtedly his best chance in this one.

If he takes a beating and manages to go the distance then he obviously isn't going to win, but provided Evans can turn the fight into a sloppy affair with little rhyme or reason, he has a real shot. I can't see Evans dominating the fight, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Jones do precisely that.

With all of that in mind, Evans simply needs to create some doubt in the minds of the judges by limiting offense in the fight. If that happens, then you never know how the judges might rule.