KJ Noons is ready to bang, but he doesn’t think Donald Cerrone will stand with him at UFC 160.

Kj1

Bravo to the UFC for signing one of the most exciting lightweight fighters in KJ Noons despite the fact that he’s lost his last 4 out of 5 fights. Clearly, Joe Silva and the rest of the decision-making crew understand that in the dwindling talent pool in the lightweight division needs fresh blood, and KJ, when he’s not getting laid on (see Josh Thomson) can be one of the most pleasant fighters to watch in the game today. KJ’s resume of striking accomplishments reads as shockingly complete. He’s an 11-2 pro boxer, he’s a decorated kickboxer and until Carlos Condit and GSP had their way with him, he was the only guy to defeat Nick Diaz for years. KJ Noons is a dangerous guy on the feet.

That’s why he doesn’t think Donald Cerrone will stand with him in their fight at UFC 160.

That’s a damn shame, considering this fight has every reason to be fight of the night, and when I saw it booked, I suspected it had fight of the year potential. Cerrone has a solid kickboxing background, and is always willing to stand and bang, but Greg Jackson may strike and tell Cowboy to get his first win of 2013.

This is what KJ said to The MMA Hour:

“I thought right away it’s a great matchup, great fireworks,” said Noons on the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show. “I’ve got a lot of respect for the guy as a fighter … . He’s very well versed. He’s a very well-rounded fighter. He likes to stand and bang, and he can mix it up anywhere.”

“I’m not making excuses for my losses, but the last five fights, the first loss was to Nick Diaz, which was a very close fight in a weight division which I don’t even fight in,” Noons said. “I did that for the organization because they asked me to. … I did lose to [Jorge] Masvidal, so we can say that’s a loss. Came back and won a fight after that, and then I fought Josh [Thomson] and he just laid on me like a human blanket. I kind of look at that like he was pretty scared to fight. I guess it wasn’t even really a fight, and then last fight, the judges gave it to [Couture]. Like I said, I’m not trying to make a lot of excuses, but it’s just kind of where the cards fell.”

“Stylistically, I believe I still have a lot of fights left,” said Noons. “I’m an exciting fighter. I think that has a lot to play in what the UFC decides. … I’m pretty confident that my style of fighting is pretty exciting and people like to watch it. That’s what the UFC likes. They like exciting fights and what people want to see.”

There’s only been one person that’s stood and banged with me,” said Noons. “It was Nick Diaz. I don’t know if that’s the smartest thing … . I train for every aspect of the game because it’s MMA. It might look like it’s going to be a standup war, but people want to put it wherever it’s going to be the most to their advantage. I feel like the biggest advantage for me is standing. He’s probably going to be wanting to take it anywhere, make my hands tired, make legs tired. I’m ready for wherever the fight goes. I think it’s going to be exciting anywhere.”