Tito Ortiz has made quite a bold statement.
Speaking to TMZ, Ortiz, a former UFC light heavyweight champion, said he thinks he can beat arguably the greatest fighter of all time, current UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
“I think I can beat Jon Jones,” Ortiz said. “I think I have a good chance – I really do think I’ve got a good chance. If people say, ‘Oh, Tito, (expletive), you’re over the hill,’ whatever. Come to my camp. Come train with me. Come wrestle with me. Come do jiu-jitsu with me. Watch my weight training. Watch my biking and stairs that I do. I push myself harder than I pushed myself through my whole career. I’m doing amazing. My mind is in the right place, my body is in the right place.”
Ortiz is scheduled to take on former WWE champion Alberto Del Rio in a 210-pound catchweight bout in the headliner of a Combate Americas pay-per-view event Dec. 7 in Hidalgo, Texas.
The UFC Hall of Famer acknowledged Jones is one of the greatest talents to ever step in the cage, but thinks he has tarnished his legacy with his mishaps in and out of the cage.
“He could be the best ever, but I mean, could have – not anymore,” Ortiz said. “He tarnished his career so many times, so much stuff that he did in and out of the cage it just – God, it bums me out because I love the guy, man. He was one of the best light heavyweights to ever grace the octagon.”
Considering Jones’ accolades, where both guys are in their careers, and the fact Ortiz is almost 13 years his senior, Ortiz’s claim likely will be viewed as absurd.
But Ortiz thinks the key to beating the long and rangy Jones is to press forward and take his weapons away from the outside.
“Come on, why wouldn’t I? Pressure, pressure, pressure,” Ortiz said. “You stay in that angle, the outside reach of him, you’ve got problems with it. You can’t just sit there and play his game.”
