Chael Sonnen did all of the talking, but it was the champion that did all of the damage once the cage door closed. Jon Jones used Chael Sonnen’s own game plan against him as he repeatedly took the challenger down and battered him with a brutal ground-and-pound attack forcing a stoppage at 4:33 of the opening round.
Sonnen came out pressuring but quickly found himself on his back as Jones took the fight to the mat. Sonnen managed to get back to his feet, eating an uppercut as Jones stepped back. Jones initiated the clinch again, and Sonnen had success inside, flurrying with short punches, but again found himself on his back after another takedown. Again, Sonnen got back to his feet, but could not shake Jones as the champion came forward with an uppercut followed by a spinning back elbow before clinching once again against the cage.
Jones then snatched the hips of Sonnen off the cage and got a powerful slam that set up his patented elbow attack from the top. Sonnen tried desperately to shake Jones but found himself trapped on the cage once he kicked off to create space. Jones pounced, landing a brutal knee to the sternum before continuing his assault with punches and elbows from the top as Sonnen covered up to survive the onslaught. The referee intervened almost immediately, stopping the bout at the 4:33 mark.
The dominating finish continues to build the legacy of Jon Jones as he improves to 18-1 (12-1 UFC) while retaining his title once again. In the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, it was discovered that Jones may have broken his foot, or at best dislocated his big toe as the appendage angled out from his foot at an awkward angle.