When Bruce Buffer yelled 'it's time' did Rashad Evans hear him? I suspected we may be disappointed as fight fans, I just never thought it would be because Rashad Evans didn't try to win.
For 5 rounds Rashad Evans seemed content to say he went the distance with Jon Jones. I watched this fight just waiting for Evans to take a chance and force the issue, possibly making Jones uncomfortable. Problem was that never happened. Evans just stood there with his hands down and barely threw a punch. Now to Jones' credit Evans realized how difficult it was to get inside and neutralize Jones' reach advantage. Jones continually jabbed Evans not with his hands but with his elbows. Evans appeared defeated more mentally than physically.
The problem was even the few times Evans had Jones retreating after successful strikes, Evans just stopped throwing punches and never attacked. I understand being cautious. Obviously Jon Jones is a dangerous and unpredictable striker, so rushing him may result in you getting dropped and possibly knocked out. However, Evans spending more time in defense mode isn't going to win any rounds.
You can make a slight argument Evans won the first round. He had a strong finish to the round and Jones did his least amount of damage in that round. For the next 4 rounds Jones just put on a striking clinic. Ground and pound is normally where elbows are utilized the most. In this fight Jon Jones showed how devastating and mentally breaking elbows can be to an opponent while standing. Evans had no idea how to defend against the elbow strikes. He even cited in the post fight interview how much of an impact they had on him.
While that is true, and not to take anything away from how great Jones is, Rashad Evans seemed to have quit and even ignored his corner as they yelled for him to attack Jones. Rashad Evans said before the fight that he knew how to take Jones down. Well, if he did he certainly didn't display it Saturday night. Evans attempted a total of 2 takedowns; neither appeared to even move Jon Jones. In between rounds Evans' corner told him to be more aggressive but he did the opposite.
What happened to how angry Rashad was? We heard for so long how much he wanted to not only beat Jones but hurt him in the process. I think two things: 1. Rashad is genuinely a nice guy and I feel his anger towards Jones stemmed more from the thoughts of feeling betrayed. The way Evans attacked Jones personally tells me Evans' feelings were hurt by Jones and by Jackson. Evans took his ball and ran home by leaving Jackson's camp. Nobody told Evans to leave. 2. Evans allowed his emotions in this whole ordeal get the better of him and by the time the bell rang, Evans was already emotionally drained.
Evans mentioned in the post fight interview that Jones talked trash one time during the fight and he just shrugged it off. Everyone knows fighting is 90% mental. Evans may have lost this fight before it even started by not channeling his negative energy and rage towards Jones. Most people say Evans fatigued physically during the fight. Now, Jones did make him work hard in defending and I'm sure Evans may have gassed to a degree, I just think Evans gassed more mentally.
The one thing I was disappointed in was, when Evans knew he was down arguably 4 rounds to none entering the 5th and final round but failed to go for broke. I would have more respect for Evans had he taken chances, even if it resulted in being stopped or knocked out. I think that was his biggest fear--he didn't want to be embarrassed. He can take solace in being the first fighter to take Jones to the limit. But what does it really mean when you lose a unanimous decision and did almost nothing in the process?
Evans said he will work his way back up, but that is never guaranteed. He may look back on this one day (he may have already done it after the fight) and regret not making Jones work harder defensively. We will never know how Jones would've reacted to such pressure. I do know one thing. Jones' next opponent, Dan Henderson, will definitely do the opposite of Rashad Evans. Jon Jones will be tested. Henderson may be past his prime and slower than Jones, but I assure you there will be no quit in the legendary fighter we call 'Hendo'. I can say with confidence that fight fans will not be disappointed in that fight.
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