Quote Originally Posted by mainbutter View Post
The fact is that he had not faced any "top 10" guys at all in the UFC, which at this stage in the sport's evolution is generally standard to lead up to a title shot. It's just good marketing to have a fight between two guys who deserve a shot, and let the winner take on the champ.

The fact of the matter is that if Ryan Bader defeated Jon Jones when they were matched up, he would not have been given a title shot without at least one intermediate fight, and IMO that's a perfect argument for saying that Jones was handed a title shot without proving that he can compete at the top level. Everyone GUESSED that he could compete at the top level based on previous performance, but we didn't know until he took on the champ.
BG knew it from the first time BG saw him. Ask Boanerges or look back on posts. BG knew it. Plus, you could hardly call Leben top ten material when Silva whupped him. Dana knows what he's doing. Anybody can lose a fight with a "lucky" punch. Dana didn't want that to happen with his future meal ticket. BG still thinks he waited a couple fights too long though. If Jones keeps improving, he will probably go down as an all time great. If he keeps his head on straight anyway.