UFC 182: Myles Jury Can Distinguish Himself as a Topflight Lightweight

For someone who has been featured on two seasons of The Ultimate Fighter and is undefeated with six wins inside the Octagon, Myles Jury has flown a bit under the radar. Against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in the co-main event of UFC 182 on Saturday night, he has a chance to change that.

Jury’s UFC career started off on The Ultimate Fighter Season 13, where an ACL injury forced him off the show. He made it back into the TUF house for the show’s 15th season, where he lost in the fan-voted "Fight of the Season" to Al Iaquinta.

Since the two-round bouts on The Ultimate Fighter are exhibition fights that don’t count toward a fighter's professional record, Jury is still technically undefeated as a pro. He hit the ground running at the TUF 15 finale, finishing Chris Saunders with a guillotine choke in the first round.

Perhaps his most impressive victory was his most recent, a 92-second destruction of former Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi. He made it look easy against Diego Sanchez in the fight prior to that and has proved that he is a force at lightweight.

On the Countdown to UFC 182, Cerrone tells Jury to “bring a lunch” if he plans on walking through him. Cerrone went toe-to-toe with Edson Barboza in what was essentially a one-round kickboxing match, and when he landed a good shot that dropped Barboza, he leapt onto his back and put him away with a rear-naked choke.

Cerrone is a bad man.

Jury’s unassuming demeanor and general indifference to the spotlight have caused him to get lost in the shuffle of the crowded UFC lightweight division. The fight with Cerrone gives the Alliance MMA fighter a chance to put a stamp on his spot in the top of the division.

John Locher/Associated Press

Cerrone has been the most active fighter in the UFC since he came over from the WEC in 2011. His current run, a whizzing streak of five victories over top competition, is perhaps his best yet, and Cerrone is as close to a UFC title shot as he has ever been. 

Cowboy’s busy schedule and unique approach to life and fighting have kept him ever-present in the minds of MMA fans. Fighting so often might eventually cause some of Cerrone’s “old-man strength” to turn into old-man fatigue. If any of that shows up against the more youthful and technical Jury, Cerrone’s title chances might go out the window.

The fight should be a battle. Cerrone is adept on his feet and on the mat, and he likes nothing more than to be caught in a firefight inside the Octagon. Jury is a young and dangerous challenge, with very high-level jiu-jitsu and proven knockout power.

It will be difficult for Jury to beat someone at the elite level such as Cerrone in anything other than a dogfight. If he comes out victorious, he will have solidified himself as an elite fighter in the UFC’s most talent-rich division.