The light heavyweight class is the marquee division in the UFC, so much so that when Jon Jones fights Vladimir Matyushenko on August 1, it will be the 10th light heavyweight main event of the last 19 UFC shows.All that light heavyweight talent in the UFC means that the winner of the Jones-Matyushenko fight won't necessarily be particularly high in the 205-pound rankings, or particularly close to a shot against the champion, Shogun Rua. Both Jones and Matyushenko say they're fine with that.
"I just rank as that guy who has to fight Vladimir next," Jones said. "I try not to think too far ahead. Vladimir is the biggest fight of my career and I just try not to think beyond that, there are so many great fighters and still a lot of guys I consider better than me. I don't focus on where I rank."
The 39-year-old Matyushenko challenged Tito Ortiz for the light heavyweight title in 2001, but while he'd love to get another shot at the belt some day, he says he's not thinking about where he belongs in the rankings.
"I never rank myself," Matyushenko said. "There's only one ranking, that's the champion who's No. 1. To get there I have to beat a few guys. For me now it's Jon but there are a lot of other guys in the 205-pound division I'd have to beat to be No. 1."
Jones said he's not thinking about a title fight any time soon because he views his next fight as being every bit as important as a fight for the belt: "I have a title fight against Vladimir."
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