The Sobering Truth About Alexander Gustafsson

One man’s victorious war cries rang out among the silence of thousands at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, on Saturday night. For a moment in time, if only seconds, the MMA world stopped moving. 

UFC Fight Night 59, a night that was guaranteed to light the fuse for a long-awaited rematch between Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson, felt more like a trip to the twilight zone. Onlookers watched in complete dismay as Gustafsson, the pride of Sweden, sulked on his coach’s shoulder after getting trounced in the first round by Anthony Johnson.

For more than a year, Gustafsson’s mug has appeared on magazines and video game covers, and no one ever stopped to ask why.

The most significant wins in his career have come against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Thiago Silva and Jimi Manuwa. In other words, his lofty perch at the top of the UFC rankings came without a single win over a Top Five opponent. People often criticize Conor McGregor for the absurdity of his expedited rise through the featherweight ranks, but he at least has a dominant win over the previously fifth-ranked Dustin Poirier.

Even Jones appeared unconvinced in a recent post on Twitter, where he listed his top UFC light heavyweights:

Jones' post coincides with comments he made to Fox Sports last year when discussing a potential rematch with Gustafsson: "I find it funny, because Gustafsson lost the fight fair and square. I will admit he won Round 1 and Round 3, but that's it. I won the fight. I've never heard someone chirp so much who lost."

As the dust settles from Johnson’s walloping of Gustafsson, one has to wonder if we have all been prisoners of September 21, 2013.

It was the night that Gustafsson took Jones through the fire in one of the greatest title fights in UFC history. Jones, who is often lauded as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, had seemingly met the Joe Frazier to his Muhammad Ali. The title didn’t change hands that night, but as both fighters lay bloodied and battered in the Octagon, a changing of the guard unknowingly began to take place.

Gustafsson became the people’s champion.

It was as if the past criticisms of his lackluster resume magically faded away into obscurity. All of the fans chirping about the UFC’s disservice for lopsided matchmaking were now calling for an immediate rematch. Fans even voted for Gustafsson to join Jones on the cover of EA’s UFC video game.

Thus began the UFC hype machine in turning an unlikely contender into a household name.

Factually, we all know Gustafsson is a good fighter who came close to defeating Jones. Everything after that is predicated around mere assumption and a heavy dependence on “MMA Math.” People have bypassed the possibility of an off night for Jones and the importance of style matchups in christening Gustafsson as the top light heavyweight contender.

The technical eye test puts Gustafsson in the thick of things at 205 pounds, but he will eventually need some real legs to stand on. Nearly defeating Jones isn’t going to do it. In reality, Gustafsson has lost each of his marquee fights, outside of a win over a fast-declining Shogun.

Top light heavyweight contender Daniel Cormier recently challenged Gustafsson to a fight during an appearance on The MMA Hour. He called the fight his “golden ticket” to a rematch with Jones. For Gustafsson, a win over a fighter like Cormier would be his golden ticket to legitimizing all of the hype and praise he’s received over the last year.

If reality is a dish best served cold, then the sobering truth about Gustafsson is that he’s an anomaly who could prove to be overrated just as much as he was underrated.

Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA writer for Rocktagon and FanRag Sports.