Dana White explains why ‘Marreta’ — not Brock Lesnar — should be next for Jon Jones

Jon Jones was simply too much for Anthony Smith. The light heavyweight champion soundly outfought his lionhearted challenger over five lopsided rounds at UFC 235 on Saturday night, and can now look forward to his next challenge in the Octagon.

That being said, it’s not abundantly clear who is next opponent will be. While Thiago Santos — nicknamed “Marreta” — seems to be the frontrunner, the allure of heavyweight fights with Daniel Cormier and Brock Lesnar are difficult to ignore.

In the opinion of UFC President Dana White, however, the best option for Jon Jones is indeed a light heavyweight title fight with the streaking Brazilian knockout artist Thiago Santos.

“I love the Thiago Santos fight,” White said at the post-fight media conference (transcript via Sherdog). “I love that fight. I would love to see him versus Jon Jones.

“Listen, Thiago looks unbelievable at that weight,” he added later, praising the Brazilian puncher. “He’s big, I like his fighting style. And when you put Jon Jones in those types of fights, Jones shines. Jones is one of those guys that rises to the level of his opponent.”

As for a heavyweight super fight between Jon Jones and Brock Lesnar? Dana White isn’t sold on that one. That matchup, he says, belongs to reigning UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.

Besides, the UFC boss boss isn’t convinced Jon Jones actually wants to move up to the heavyweight division just yet.

“The Brock fight is Cormier’s,” White said. “When Cormier’s healthy, that’s his fight. And plus Brock has WWE obligations right now, or believe me he’d be calling me. So, [the Santos fight] is the fight to make.”

“He doesn’t seem too excited to go to heavyweight,” he added.

Who do you want to see Jon Jones fight next? Make your pick in the comments section below.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 3/4/2019.