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Jon 'Bones' Jones still No. 1 pound-for-pound, but challengers await

Ever since Jon Jones' hard-fought victory over Alexander Gustafsson (left) in September, there's been uncertainty atop the pound-for-pound MMA rankings.

Ever since Jon Jones' hard-fought victory over Alexander Gustafsson (left) in September, there's been uncertainty atop the pound-for-pound MMA rankings.

You'll note that the two paragraphs directly above have ended with quips about the Diaz brothers. Too bad Nick and Nate don't have a 145-pound brother, because this division could use some spicing up. Mendes would appear to be next in line, and as tough as he is inside the cage, he's too much of a gentleman at promotional events to play the role of Aldo's foil and generate some buzz for the rematch. Hype aside, next time Chad presumably will bring more than he did to his first-round KO loss to José in 2012. Mendes has won five straight since then, with four KOs. Maybe that'll be enough.

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