• UFC 145

'Wobbled' Jones given Henderson next

ESPN staff
April 22, 2012
Dan Henderson is next up for Jon Jones © Getty Images
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UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones will fight Dan Henderson in the next defence of his title, and he admitted Rashad Evans did rock him during round one of Saturday's main event.

Jones was stunned by a head kick from the challenger early in their five-round battle, won via unanimous decision by the champion. And he did confess in the post-fight press conference that Evans had momentarily put him on silly street.

"I wouldn't say I was hurt, but I would definitely say [Evans] wobbled me," Jones said. "There was one point where I got hit and tried to side-shuffle, and I stumbled. I was happy I was able to take punches from Rashad, because he hits hard.

"[However] I pulled guard [at the end ] because I am a mixed martial artist. A lot of times, people look at [pulling guard] as a sissy move, but I think a lot of [Brazilian jiu-jitsu] practitioners around the world loved it. It was a smart move."

President Dana White confirmed Henderson, who won the Fight of the Year in 2011 against Mauricio Shogun Rua, will be next for Jones. And the champion admits he is already excited about the fight.

"I feel great that I already have a mission," Jones said. "I'm going to work extremely hard to better myself. Dan Henderson is awesome, and he has a large fan base. I'm sure the haters are going to come out right away.

"He has extreme knockout power, and I'm excited to conquer this challenge. My goal will be to finish Dan Henderson, with all due respect."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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