UFC 135: Jon Jones' Youth Will Reign Supreme over Quinton Jackson

Quinton Jackson is one of the biggest names in UFC. His record speaks for itself. But since he lost the UFC light heavyweight championship to Forrest Griffin, let's take a look at what Jackson has done.

12/27/2008 vs. Wanderlei Silva	W-KO
3/7/2009 vs. Keith Jardine	W-UD
5/29/2010 vs. Rashad Evans	L-UD
11/20/2010 vs. Lyoto Machida	W-SD
5/28/2011 vs. Matt Hamill	W-SD

It's not a bad run of success. After all, in a sport like MMA, a 4-1 record is something to boast. Why? Well, if you're in a sport that's so violent that one punch or misstep can make the difference between a win and a loss, an 80 percent success rate isn't bad.

But what do you see in the most recent of those four fights? They all went to decision. I know that Jackson has never been a knockout or submission specialist. But in a sport where knockouts and submissions dominate, it's a little troubling to see.

Jackson is 31 years old now. That's not ancient, but he's not a young fighter by any means.

Champion Jon Jones is a different story. He sports a clean 13-1 record. The one loss was a disqualification to Matt Hamill. Jones has won all of his last five fights by knockout or submission.

Bodog lists Jones (-600) as a heavy favorite in this one. He's only 24 years old, and in the prime of his career.

Normally, an upset would be far more possible. Jackson is certainly capable of winning this fight, don't get me wrong.

But what has me doubting the possibility of an upset is that he doesn't seem to have the one thing going for him that normally exists in MMA and boxing.

An underdog is always a threat there because they are just one punch away from changing the fight in a 180 degree way.

Even when the fight begins, it can change with the snap of a finger. But the fact that Jackson has been unable to beat his opponents before the decision has me doubting the possibility of an upset.

He'll need to outfight his opponent and win in the decision. Seeing as how 11 of Jones' 13 wins were decided by knockout or submission, I have my doubts that that will happen.