Jon Jones Doesn't Think Dominick Reyes Was 'Disrespected' in Loss at UFC 247

Jon Jones has said he doesn't believe Dominick Reyes was "disrespected" during their light heavyweight title fight on Saturday at UFC 247, after the champion walked away with a unanimous-decision victory.

All three judges scored in favour of Jones, leading Reyes to express his disappointment at the result.

According to Damon Martin of MMA Fighting, Jones was bullish in response to his opponent's post-fight claim:

"I don’t think he was disrespected. I got takedowns. He got no takedowns. I got his back. At one point I put a hook in. The fifth round, I was surprised in the output difference we had. I have to watch the fight. It’s hard to speak with confidence when I haven’t watched the fight."

The Devastator quickly showed the champion it would be a difficult night after an aggressive start. Jones started to enforce more control from the third, and he dominated the championship rounds against the Californian.

Michael Wyke/Associated Press

Reyes' comments in defeat were aimed in reference to Joe Solis, who scored the fight 49-46 for Jones. The two other judges scored it 48-47. The eventual loser on the night appeared to be on top for the first two rounds before Jones swung the tide in his favour.

Per Steven Marrocco of MMA Fighting, Reyes explained his grievance and said he believed he should now have the title in his hands:

"One of the judges had it 49-46. Like, who are you? I might want to have a word with you. Other than that, I know I won that fight. I was in that fight. I don’t have to watch the replay. I was there. I made Jon Jones look like just a man. I brought the fight to him."

Jones added that he worked his way into the fight but always felt in control of the bout. The two-time champion highlighted the strength of his own repertoire in comparison to his challenger: 

"A part of me wanted to see if he could keep that up. A part of me wanted to see what he had to offer. I saw what he had to offer. I also saw that he couldn’t keep that up. You’ve got to embrace that. What I do for a living is not always pleasant. It’s just a big part of the game. It was a great feeling out process. I realized I got to take his best punches. I think my chin is very underrated. [...]

"I don’t think Dominick had any excuses for losing tonight. He lost. It was close but they say close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades. He can try 1,000 times, and I believe I’ll edge him every single time."

Jones improved to 15-0 in title fights and became the all-time leader in UFC title defenses.

Reyes showed more than enough in the contest to prove he could one day wear the title belt. He floored Jones in the opening round and drew blood in the fourth, but the New Yorker showed why he holds a legendary status in MMA as he closed out the win.