First a some words from the man himself:

“By the time this kid gets his confidence together I’ll probably already be in the heavyweight division,”
"I don’t need to wait till 2021 to start believing in myself.” Jon Jones on Twitter.


Some say that they want to see Jon Jones go up to heavy weight. Some say they want to see Khabib vs GSP. I think the biggest fight which can be made in MMA fight now is Jon Jones vs Israel Adesanya.

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Why? Jon Jones in my opinion is the best all around fighter (including striker) in the UFC. There are better wrestlers (Khabib, Askren), there are better strikers (possibly Adesanya), but Jon Jones is good at every aspect of MMA. Jon Jones can knock you out, submit you, pound you out, he can beat you with striking, or wrestling, and we have seen him knock out all time great fighters like Daniel Cormier.

Israel Adesanya has striking at least as good as Jon Jones and perhaps better but we have seen guys with excellent striking get knocked out. Michael Venom Page had all time great striking and he got knocked out. Loyoto Machida had all time great striking, went up against Jon Jones, and got choked out. So far it seems even if a fighter had great striking, if they have any weak area at all eventually Jon Jones exploits the vulnerability and wins. 

In order for Israel Adesanya to win he has to be an all around better fighter than Jon Jones. He may be a better striker but Jon Jones is also a very good striker so I do not think Israel Adesanya can knock out Jon Jones. At best he might win a round or two striking but what would Israel Adesanya do in the clinch? What would he do if Jon Jones takes him down? What will he do against the cage? Do I think Israel Adesanya can avoid being taken down by Jon Jones for 5 straight rounds?

In my opinion Israel Adesanya has to avoid the taken down for all 5 rounds to have a chance. If Jon Jones gets him down even once it could be the end of the fight because Jon Jones is notorious for being merciless at ground and pound and submissions from the top. 

Why do I think this way? Size matters when skills are equal. In striking I think their skills are equal although Daniel Cormier thinks Jon Jones will have trouble. In every other area Jon Jones has the advantage, even if skills were equal, Jon Jones is bigger, stronger, and if it goes to the ground or to wrestling, this size difference will become very obvious. 

So if I think Jon Jones would win at this point why would I want to see the fight? Because I think it would be a fun fight to watch. I don't think Jon Jones would have an easy time striking. I do think it would be a competitive fight. I just think due to size and all around Jon Jones is the favorite. We have to remember Jon Jones is also the smartest fighter in MMA, not just athletic, not just skilled, but he out thinks his opponents, which really is the only chance a smaller fighter could have (outsmart the bigger guy).

Reference

https://www.mmamania.com/2019/10/6/20901419/cormier-israel-adesanyas-striking-would-give-jon-jones-trouble
https://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Jon-Jones-Dismisses-Potential-Fight-with-New-UFC-Middleweight-Champion-Israel-Adesanya-163209