While he’s faced plenty of controversy in the course of his MMA career, Jon Jones has only faced one fighter who has defeated him: Matt Hamill.
Now 22-1, Jones most recently recorded a decision victory over Ovince St. Preux in April of last year. But the story of “Bones’” loss, if you’ll recall, has more to do with his poor decision making (or ignorance of a rule) than his opponent’s prowess inside the octagon.
Flashback to 2009: Matt Hamill, then 9-2, faced off against the then undefeated Jon Jones at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale, December 5, in Las Vegas.
Hammill, as a sidebar, has been completely deaf since birth. In addition to his his MMA exploits, he has a gold medal in Greco-Roman and Freestyle Wrestling from the 2001 Summer Deaflympics.
Back to the fight, After dominating the first round, Jones hit Hamill with several 12-6 elbows (downward strikes) during a vicious ground-and-pound onslaught. Such a strike is prohibited by the unified rules of MMA, and Jones was hit with a one-point penalty for the repeated infractions.
Hamill couldn’t continue in the fight due to a dislocated shoulder, however, and Jones was slapped with a disqualification. Further review of the fight video showed Jones had hit Hamill in his bloody mess of a nose, further reinforcing the decision to disqualify the fighter.
For his part, Hamill didn’t consider the win a victory (which was probably the right take)
“Aside from making a mistake, he [Jones] did his job and he did it well. He definitely didn’t lose this fight, and I definitely didn’t win, but I guess the rules are there for a reason.
It is what it is. I went into this fight feeling like my record was actually 9-1, so with this so-called win, I will now consider my record 9-2.”
Matt Hamill
Here’s some footage from the fight, which basically consists of Jones turning Hamill’s face into ground beef.
Hamill has gone just 3-6 since defeating Jones. He was released from UFC in 2013 and has lost his three contests since being dumped by the top circuit. Hamill hasn’t fought since a first-round defeat at the hands of Julian Marquez in October of last year, but at least he can rightfully claim to be the only man to ever defeat arguably the greatest MMA fighter in history: Jon Jones.
Where does Jon Jones fall on the list of most intimidating fighters ever:
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Locodoco: AD Carry to Support
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Uzi: AD Carry to Mid
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Lustboy: Jungle to Support
Lustboy's career switch from Jungler to Support was an immediately popular decision. Following his move to NA to play with Team SoloMid, the Korean established a cult following on account of his fearless plays.
Hai: Jungle to Mid to Jungle to Support to Mid
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Xmithie: Jungle to AD Carry
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WildTurtle: Top to AD Carry
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Xpeke: Top to Mid to AD Carry to Support
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Impact: Support to Top
It goes without saying that if you role swap and become a World Champion as a result, then the swap was undoubtedly a success. Impact was considered to be a mid-tier Support in Korea, but after switching to the top lane, he established legendary status as SKT marched to their first World Championship.
Saintvicious: Jungle to Support
Known as a competent Jungler, after switching from CLG to Curse, Saint decided to step away from the Jungling role. After initially adopting a coaching role, Saint took over as Support as the team slumped to 6th place in an eight team league.
Kiwikid: Top to Support
With the iconic Dignitas roster lacking a Support for Imaqtpie, Kiwikid was quick to offer his services in the position. Both Kiwi and QT were quick to admit that the former Top laner was far from a natural in the role, but their friendship allowed for the Dignitas roster to persevere.
Piglet: AD Carry to Mid
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Doublelift: Support to AD Carry
Another veteran AD Carry who started his career elsewhere on the rift. Playing under the banner of the kings of role swaps, Counter Logic Gaming, Doublelift was moulded into the ADC star the world knows today.
HotshotGG: Top to Jungle
Now owner of Counter Logic Gaming, HotshotGG established his reputation as a feared Nidalee player in the top lane. His move to the Jungle after internal disputes signalled the downwards curve of his playing career.
Alex Ich: Jungle to Support
An icon of his era, few remember Alex Ich initially started his professional career as a Jungler. Alex Ich only became the fabled Mid laner for Moscow 5 on account of an internal dispute.
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