Former two-time undisputed heavyweight champion, Stipe Miocic has claimed it was out of his hands if wanted to continue to compete at UFC 295 next month against an opponent other than Jon Jones – claiming the Dana White-led organization made the choice for him.
Miocic, a former two-time undisputed heavyweight champion under the banner of the organization, was set to feature in the main event of UFC 295 next month in Madison Square Garden, until his title fight return against Jones was cancelled.
And as a result, Ohio fan-favorite, Miocic has since been pulled from the card entirely, in favor of an interim heavyweight title fight between surging divisional contenders, Sergei Pavlovich, and Tom Aspinall.
Stipe Miocic claims the UFC want him to wait to fight Jon Jones next year
Sharing his thoughts on the shelved pairing against Endicott native, Jones, Miocic claimed he had no offer to compete at UFC 295 in the pound-for-pound number one’s absence.
“I don’t know why I didn’t get picked, which is fine,” Stipe Miocic said on his OnlyFans. “I understand they [the UFC] have a direction they want to go [in]. I’m okay with that. Every guy in the division is tough. I definitely want to fight the biggest fish, which is Jon Jones. It wasn’t my choice, it was theirs.”
“Listen, everything happens for a reason,” Stipe Miocic explained. “The fight [with Jon Jones] being canceled, it sucks. No question about it. Unfortunately, that’s just the game we’re in. It happens. Like I said, I hope he’s okay. You want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. I want that belt back. It’s my belt. It’s going to happen.”
Sidelined from active competition since he headlined UFC 260 back in 2021, Miocic most recently suffered a thunderous second round KO loss to Cameroonian heavy-hitter, Francis Ngannou in the pair’s championship rematch.
Do you expect to see Stipe Miocic eventually make a return to the UFC?