Jon Jones Talks Training With Greg Jackson And Mike Winklejohn
UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones has made his name in the sport of MMA with his meteoric rise to the pinnacle of the 205-pound division. The youngest UFC champion in the promotion’s history, ‘Bones’ has racked up a superb 19-1 record (unbeaten, unless you count the DQ against Hamill).
Currently slated to face hard-hitting Glover Teixeira at UFC 172, Jones will have been working hard at the renowned Jackson’s MMA. He stopped by with Bloodyelbow.com to discuss his preparations in camp:
“I work with coach Winkeljohn three times as much as I work with coach Jackson. Greg Jackson is more the guy that’s going to talk to you to make sure you have the right attitude going into the fight, make sure that you believe that you’re going to win, he’s more of an attitude guy, which is very important – to have a winning attitude.””
“Greg has been a tremendous influence on me. He’s been like a sports psychologist. He teaches me a lot of things about just being tough, the warrior spirit, pushing through and one of Greg’s favorite quotes is ‘Be comfortable being uncomfortable.'”
Jackson’s gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico has created some real superstars over the years, but you could argue that Jones or Georges St-Pierre are the most successful of them all. Jones continued:
“Winkeljohn is the guy who’s putting in a lot of grunt work when it comes to me and my kickboxing. Wink’s all day every day hitting pads. He’s just a phenomenal athlete to do rounds all day with elite level fighters.”
Mike Winklejohn was actually a three-time world champion in Muay Thai, so there really aren’t many other people you would like to train stand up with. Jones’ stand up skills, partnered with his physical advantages over most at 205 pounds have helped make him the force he is today.
“If you watch the corner, Greg will say, ‘Jon, breathe, relax.’ Just his voice, you know? We do drills where he’ll get us extremely exhausted and he’ll give us a one minute break to calm ourselves down, and he’ll sit us down in the chair in the Octagon and he’ll just say breathe and relax, and when he says breathe and relax it just takes you back to the practice room and makes you forget that this guy’s waiting to kill you on the other side of the room, and it helps you calm yourself.””
Who knows, perhaps Jackson’s words will make the difference in the fight against Teixeira, especially if Jones gets rocked early in the fight. Staying composed is a big part in surviving when in danger, and that is a real possibility against a guy like GT. As the time draws closer, who do you feel will be champ after 172?
