TORONTO – Of the UFC’s nine current weight classes, the light heavyweight division is arguably the most lacking when it comes to rising prospects and legitimate title contenders.

The latter can be credited to the dominance of divisional kingpin Jon Jones, who’s essentially wiped the 205-pound weight class clean of threats over his nearly three-year title reign. The former, however, is a little more worrisome.

According to the UFC’s official website, there are just 26 active fighters on the light heavyweight roster, and including Jones (19-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC), only four are 30 or younger. Six fighters are on the wrong side of 35, and currently, the average age of the division as a whole is 32.9 years old.

Those facts paint a grim future for what has long been long been the UFC’s marquee weight class. But despite that, the man who’s ruled the division with an iron fist (and elbows) is optimistic UFC matchmakers will continue to churn out high-quality opponents to challenge for his belt.

“I think that the UFC light heavyweight division is in a great, healthy state,” Jones told MMAjunkie. “I think that there’s always going to be new competition. I think that there are guys right now that we don’t even know exist that are working their way up. There’s going to be tons of new competition for me, and really, styles make matchups.”

Jones points to his most recent outing against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 as motivation to never stay complacent at the top of the mountain, regardless of how strong his challengers are. Few expected the lengthy Swede to give the champion much of a fight back in September, but ultimately, it resulted in Jones’ most competitive match to date.

“(With) the Gustafsson fight, nobody thought it would be even close, but look what happened: The guy scarred me permanently in the face,” Jones said. “I’ve learned to not think that I’ve cleared any division and to respect every style, every fighter.”

Other than Gustafsson (15-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC), the only man to take Jones the distance during his reign is former titleholder Rashad Evans.

Evans (19-3-1 MMA, 14-3-1 UFC) has reestablished himself as a contender with back-to-back wins over Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen, and he’s stated his desire to earn a rematch with “Bones.”

Even though Jones tries to finish every opponent by knockout or submission, and “Suga” managed to take him all five rounds, the champ said a rematch against his former training partner isn’t appealing.

“I think I could have performed better (against Rashad), but at the same time, I was going against a guy who was an extremely high-level athlete, so I’m happy with it,” Jones said of his UFC 145 win over Evans. “As far as fighting Rashad again, I have no real ambition to fight him again. If he earns his way back to a title shot, I’ll do it all over again, but for the most part, me and Rashad are history.”

Currently, a date for Jones’ next title defense hasn’t been set. However, it’s known his opponent will be dangerous Brazilian Glover Teixeira. Teixeira (22-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) will enter the contest on a 20-fight winning streak, but some feel his lack of victories over top 10 opponents make him a questionable title challenger.

Jones sees things differently, though, and said he’s highly motivated by the potential of losing to a significant underdog.

“When I fight these guys, that’s what brings out the best in me,” Jones said. “I think my own fear just encourages me to work hard and limit my opponents’ chances of winning.”

If Jones manages to have his way with Teixeira for what would be his seventh consecutive title defense, his next fight is already in the works. While the likes of Phil Davis and Daniel Cormier are hanging around on the verge of a championship fight, it’s Gustafsson who will earn a rematch with Jones should he defeat Jimi Manuwa in March.

A second fight between Jones and Gustafsson is in high demand after their first meeting in Toronto resulted in a “Fight of the Year” candidate. Jones said he’s open to taking on all comers; however, he feels Gustafsson should have to accomplish more than defeating an unranked opponent in Manuwa (14-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) to earn another crack at his belt.

“I think the UFC really wants to see me and Alexander Gustafsson rematch really bad, and they really gave him a really easy path back to the belt,” Jones said. “Without being disrespectful to Jimi, Jimi’s not a top 10 fighter, so I don’t see how you’re going to fight a guy not in the top 10 to get another world championship fight. It just doesn’t make sense.”

Pushing aside the politics of how the fight will be made, a rematch with Gustafsson seems to be one of the few lucrative challenges remaining for Jones. If Jones continues to win beyond Gustafsson, the odds of crossing paths with Davis (12-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC), Cormier (13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) and perhaps even Evans again are quite high, if only because there’s no one else out there.

Despite Jones’ claims of a “healthy” weight class, the division could struggle to provide tests for the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter. After dismantling essentially everyone put in front of him since debuting in 2008, Jones knows the 205-pound division is not long for him, which is why a move up to heavyweight is targeted for the future.

The New York native is a goal-orientated fighter, and once his work at light heavyweight is done, a “super fight” against reigning heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez is the next goal on Jones’ career hit list.

“I think that’s going to happen in the next two years,” he said. “I’ll go up to heavyweight permanently. I’m looking to take a super fight sooner or later, within the next year.

“I’ve really been thinking about me and Cain Velasquez going at it. I think that would be huge for the sport. He’s definitely the toughest guy in the division and he’s not that big, so I think it would be a really entertaining fight. So don’t be surprised if you see that sooner or later.”