Author: Dan Hiergesell

Jon Jones looked as good as ever last night (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) at UFC 309 LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, when he put a brutal stop to former UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic with a nasty spinning back kick TKO. It was Jones’ 12th overall UFC title dense, which is now a new record.

In co-main event action, former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira fought off a wild fifth-round comeback attempt by Michael Chandler to get back into the UFC win column (highlights HERE).

In addition to the heavyweight headliner and lightweight rematch, UFC 309 spit out a collection if memorable fights, finishes, and standout performances. Check out some of them below and let us know which ones made the biggest impact:

• Streaking welterweight prospect Oban Elliott pushed his UFC record to 3-0 with a vicious third-round knockout finish over Bassil Hafez (watch HERE)
• Ramiz Brahimaj looked better than ever with a crushing knockout win over welterweight mainstay Mickey Gall

• Lightweight veteran Jim Miller delivered another epic performance with a slick guillotine choke over former featherweight Damon Jackson (highlights HERE)
• Heavyweight contender Marcin Tybura turned back rising prospect Jhonata Diniz with a brutal second-round beatdown

To sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC 309 post-fight bonus winners below:

• Fight of the Night: Charles Oliveira vs. Michael Chandler
• Performance of the Night: Jon Jones
• Performance of the Night: Ramiz Brahimaj
• Performance of the Night: Oban Elliott

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For complete UFC 309 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.

Jon Jones retained his UFC heavyweight title last night (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) at UFC 309 LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, stopping a returning Stipe Miocic with a ridiculous third-round TKO (spinning back kick and punches).

It didn’t take long for Jones to close the gap and score a beautiful sweep along the cage to drag Miocic to the canvas. That’s where the entire first round would play out as Jones stayed heavy in top position and rained down heavy elbows from all angles. A final barrage in the last few seconds cut Miocic below his right eye.

Jones opened up more on the feet in the second round with some nice front kicks to Miocic’s body, which grabbed the former champion’s attention. Miocic even started flinching when Jones feinted the kick. He would come back to land a few good shots that had Jones on the retreat, but Miocic was hesitant to follow through and press the action. It allowed Jones to regroup and start picking Miocic apart with kicks and jabs.

Jones kept the momentum up in the third round when he rocked Miocic with a stiff right hand. Miocic survived, though, but he was waiting for “Bones” and it allowed the heavyweight champion to set anything up that he wanted. Eventually, Jones found a home for a wicked spinning back kick to the body that put Miocic down. Jones quickly rushed in for a few heavy blows before the fight was waved off.

Jones looked to be in vintage form for his first official UFC heavyweight title defense as he had his way with a former titleholder. Miocic did look a little slower than we remember, but it was still a great outing by “Bones.”

Check out the full fight highlights below along with a post-fight retirement speech by Miocic:

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For complete UFC 309 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.

Charles Oliveira returned to the UFC win column last night (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) at UFC 309 LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, outlasting fellow lightweight contender Michael Chandler in an entertaining co-main event rematch.

Most of the first round was spent on the ground after an awkward takedown by Oliveira had both men tied up in a pretzel. Chandler played it safe off his back while “do Bronx” also took his time for ground-and-pound and potential passes. It was pretty much a stalemate for about four-straight minutes.

Oliveira started to open up on the feet in the second round. He hurt Chandler multiple times and even had “Iron” Mike running around the Octagon in escape. Chandler eventually bit down on his mouthpiece and welcome a brawl, but that’s when Oliveira changed levels and took him down to take full mount. Oliveira would land heavy elbows from the top as Chandler turned into a human punching bag.

Oliveira stalked Chandler down on the feet early into the third round before he moved inside and took his back off a takedown. Chandler has fought Oliveira before so he was familiar with the Brazilian’s rear-naked choke. It enabled Chandler to avoid any fight-ending situations despite losing another exhausting five minutes.

The fourth round offered more of the same as Chandler’s explosive attempts on the feet fell flat and it allowed Oliveira to take him back down. Oliveira came pretty close to a rear-naked choke this time around with about one minute left, but Chandler’s defense was still on point. Fortunately for Chandler, he finally found his home for a collection of punches in the fifth round that badly hurt “do Bronx.” Oliveira seemed to be on the ropes as Chandler unloaded heavy ground-and-pound along the cage, but the former UFC lightweight champion could not be finished.

Oliveira would eventually land a late takedown in the round to once again take Chandler’s back. This time, Chandler was able to stand up, yell to the crowd, and jump up to fall onto his back. The crowd loved it so Chandler got back to his feet once more and did it again. The two fighters would show some sportsmanship in the final moments, but this co-main event rematch was all Oliveira.

Check out the video highlights below:

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For complete UFC 309 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.

*** HIGHLIGHTS! Watch Jones Maul Miocic, Secure Heavyweight G.O.A.T. Legacy ***

With UFC 309 in the books after a solid night (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) of fights live on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, fight fans can now check out the post-fight press conference video above for all the best reaction and official bonus winners.

On a night that featured a main event title fight between reigning UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones and former titleholder Stipe Miocic, a pivotal co-main event rematch between top lightweight finishers Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler, the return of undefeated middleweight sensation Bo Nickal, and a New York homecoming for former UFC champion Chris Weidman, there will be a lot to discuss now that the action has concluded.

The post-fight presser is scheduled to go LIVE in the above video player around 1:15 a.m. ET (Sunday). It will feature the biggest winners and losers from the card, as well as UFC CEO Dana White.

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For complete UFC 309 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.

Former President of the United States, Donald Trump, made a grand arrival at UFC 309 earlier tonight (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, making his first public appearance since winning a landslide 2024 Presidential Election earlier this month. Trump, who will become the 47th President of the United States early next year, showed up alongside Elon Musk and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Given Trump’s ties to New York and history of attending high-profile UFC PPV cards, it’s no surprise he’s attending UFC 309 for a Jon Jones heavyweight title fight against Stipe Miocic. The former POTUS also has a close relationship with undefeated middleweight fighter, Bo Nickal, who fights on tonight’s PPV main card against Paul Craig. revealed earlier this week that Trump tried to become his manager a few years back so he wasn’t going to miss him compete.

Throughout fight week, Trump’s name has been brought up and all rumors pointed to him attending UFC 309 just two weeks after he handily won the Presidential election opposite Kamala Harris. Still, it was incredible to finally see him make a memorable entrance to MSG and get a massive ovation in the process.

Check it out below:

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MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 309 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPNews at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 309: “Jones vs. Miocic” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 309 fight card and PPV lineup click here.

Jim Miller continued to do Jim Miller things earlier tonight (Sat., Nov. 16, 2024) at UFC 309 LIVE on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Madison Square Garden in New York City, when the lightweight veteran submitted former featherweight Damon Jackson with a beautiful first-round submission (guillotine).

Miller was a betting underdog entering this fight, but didn’t seem to care. The veteran fighter has seen it all inside of the Octagon and has performed on some of the biggest stages in UFC history. A return to MSG where he captured a decision win over Thiago Alves back at UFC 205 seemed too good to be true. Leave it up to Miller to deliver when it mattered most to give fight fans another memorable outing.

After a few minutes of back-and-forth work to begin the first round, Jackson shot in for a takedown and Miller defended perfectly. As Jackson kept trying to push through he left his neck wide open and Miller quickly jumped the gilly. “A-10” has one of the best guillotine chokes in the lightweight division and wouldn’t be denied. Jackson eventually tapped and forced the referee to step in. After the fight, Jackson left his gloves in the cage and announced his retirement from MMA.

Check out the video highlights below:

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For complete UFC 309 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.