UFC 135 Results: Which Light Heavyweight Fighters Will Defeat Jon Jones?

Jon Jones further established his dominance over the light heavyweight division at UFC 135 by becoming the first fighter to finish the former PRIDE and UFC light heavyweight champion. Just three years into his career, it is becoming increasingly difficult to envision a scenario in which he loses.

But this is mixed martial arts, after all, and every fighter is just one punch away from losing. The thing that separates Jones from every fighter is his unique frame and amazing athleticism. He boasts the longest reach of any fighter in UFC at 84.5 inches, making it virtually impossible for opponents to lay a hand on him.

In addition to his reach, he is the most unique fighter in the sport. He is constantly evolving and willing to try new things, which we saw last night when he started out the fight with Jackson with his hands and feet on the ground.

While it is hard to envision Jones losing a fight today, it is not impossible to defeat him, you just have to have power, speed and a great wrestling base in order to do it. And if a fighter doesn't have a great wrestling base, they have to excel in the first two areas.

Here are three light heavyweight fighters who have what it takes to defeat Jones.

Rashad Evans

Evans is already the No. 1 contender for the light heavyweight championship thanks to his victory over Tito Ortiz in August, and they had a very contentious stare down after Jones' victory last night.

He and Jones have a very contentious relationship already, and it figures to get even more heated when the fight is officially announced—presumably in early 2012.

Jones has yet to be tested in a fight, but he has never gone up against a wrestler the caliber of Evans. In mixed martial arts, the most important base that a fighter can have is wrestling.

Evans has been improving as a stand up fighter, and showed no rust in his fight with Ortiz.

If Evans can get Jones down and hold him there, he has the power to force a stoppage or at least earn a decision victory.

Lyoto Machida

Of all the 205-pound fighters in the world, there is not a better candidate to defeat Jones than Lyoto Machida.

His defensive-aggressive fighting style has been virtually impossible for anyone to figure out, with Mauricio Rua being the only one to truly conquer Machida. (Quinton Jackson beat him, but he never actually figured out the style in their fight last November.)

If Jones is able to get past Evans, Machida will likely be the next in line for a title shot.

Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

I know that Jones wiped the floor with Jones in March, but I am not convinced that Rua was completely healthy in that fight. Plus, he was coming off a long layoff and undoubtedly had cage rust in that fight.

Rua bounced back with an easy victory over Forrest Griffin at UFC 134, and is ready to make another run at the light heavyweight title.

Of the three fighters on the list, Rua has the highest mountain to climb to earn a title shot because he has already been defeated by Jones.

But he has one-punch knockout power, so you can’t count him out of any fight that he is in. It will be awhile before we see the rematch between Jones and Rua. But when it does happen, don’t be surprised if Rua is able to forth a better effort than he showed the first time around.