Tag: Stipe Miocic

Former UFC Title Challenger ‘Doesn’t See’ Jon Jones Destroying Miocic: ‘Going To Be Really Close’

When the fight was scheduled to take place last year at UFC 295, a lot of people were quick to write off Stipe Miocic’s chances of dethroning the heavyweight champion, Jon Jones. Miocic has accomplished a lot a former two-time champion but his years away from the Octagon and last fight meant that a lot […]

When the fight was scheduled to take place last year at UFC 295, a lot of people were quick to write off Stipe Miocic’s chances of dethroning the heavyweight champion, Jon Jones. Miocic has accomplished a lot a former two-time champion but his years away from the Octagon and last fight meant that a lot of people didn’t think that he would be at his best.

This same narrative has only increased since that fight was postponed due to Jones’ injury and rescheduled for UFC 309 this weekend, over one year on from their previously scheduled encounter. However, there are some fellow fighters that believe that this fight will end up being far more competitive than many are expecting.

Miocic was knocked out by Francis Ngannou the last time that we saw him in action but “The Predator” might be the most devastating puncher in the sport and Jones is not known for his heavy hands. In his trilogy with Daniel Cormier, Miocic was able to showcase his wrestling, boxing and fight IQ in order to win their second and third clashes.

Former UFC title challenger Steve Erceg is one member of the roster who believes that Miocic will prove to be a tough test for “Bones”. The Aussie flyweight recently gave his thoughts on the fight in an interview with Fox Sports Australia.

“I’ve been thinking about this fight and believe it’s going to be a really close. Even though everyone is saying Jon Jones will destroy Stipe, I don’t see it because I just can’t see Jon taking Miocic down consistently. I think people are overlooking that.

“Jon Jones also isn’t known for his ridiculous knockout power, so to win he’ll have to beat Stipe through five rounds and I can’t see him (Miocic) being picked apart for five rounds, either. When it comes to Stipe Miocic, I think most people know – or should know – that he isn’t someone to be trifled with. That’s why I think it’s going to be a barn burner. So while I’m probably still leaning towards Jon, if I was having a punt I’d go Stipe because in what I believe will be a close fight, he’s great value.”

UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic Weigh-In Results

UFC 309 takes place tomorrow night, and MMA News is here to bring you the official weigh-in results! After staging fights in Edmonton and Las Vegas to kick off the month, the mixed martial arts leader will host its annual November numbered event from Madison Square Garden in New York City. One title will be […]

UFC 309 takes place tomorrow night, and MMA News is here to bring you the official weigh-in results!

After staging fights in Edmonton and Las Vegas to kick off the month, the mixed martial arts leader will host its annual November numbered event from Madison Square Garden in New York City.

One title will be on the line at the top of the card, with Jon Jones defending his heavyweight belt against returning former champion Stipe Miocic n the main event. Co-headlining, meanwhile, will be a crucial lightweight rematch between ex-titleholder Charles Oliveira and the always entertaining Michael Chandler

Also on the main card will be returns for highly touted middleweight prospect Bo Nickal, surging flyweight contender Karine Silva, and electric lightweight newcomer Mauricio Ruffy.

UFC 309: Jones vs. Miocic Weigh-In Results

UFC 309 takes place Saturday, November 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The main card begins at 10 PM ET/7 PM PT, with the preliminary card starting at 6 PM ET/3 PM PT.

See above for a replay of the UFC 309 Weigh-In Show, and check out the full results below.

Main Card:

  • Heavyweight Championship Main Event: Jon Jones (237.6lbs) vs. Stipe Miocic (248.6lbs)
  • Lightweight Co-Main Event: Charles Oliveira (155.6lbs) vs. Michael Chandler (155.6lbs)
  • Women’s Flyweight: Viviane Araújo (125.6lbs) vs. Karine Silva (125.8lbs)
  • Middleweight: Bo Nickal (185.4lbs) vs. Paul Craig (186lbs)
  • Catchweight (165lbs): Mauricio Ruffy (164.4lbs) vs. James Llontop (166.2lbs)*

Preliminary Card:

  • Bantamweight: Jonathan Martinez (135.8lbs) vs. Marcus McGhee (135.6lbs)
  • Middleweight: Eryk Anders (185.6lbs) vs. Chris Weidman (186lbs)
  • Lightweight: Jim Miller (155.6lbs) vs. Damon Jackson (155.2lbs)
  • Featherweight: David Onama (155.6lbs) vs. Roberto Romero (155lbs)

Early Preliminary Card: 

  • Heavyweight: Marcin Tybura (251lbs) vs. Jhonata Diniz (253.2lbs)
  • Welterweight: Mickey Gall (170.8lbs) vs. Ramiz Brahimaj (170.2lbs)
  • Welterweight: Bassil Hafez (171lbs) vs. Oban Elliott (170lbs)
  • Women’s Flyweight: Veronica Hardy (125.8lbs) vs. Eduarda Moura (125.2lbs)

*James Llontop missed the catchweight limit by 0.2 pounds

Israel Adesanya Sees Quick End for Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic Bout, Two-Round Finish

Israel Adesanya Sees Quick End for Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic Bout, Two-Round FinishIsrael Adesanya thinks Jon Jones gets the job done at UFC 309. Jones’ return to the Octagon this Saturday…

Israel Adesanya Sees Quick End for Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic Bout, Two-Round Finish

Israel Adesanya thinks Jon Jones gets the job done at UFC 309.

Jones’ return to the Octagon this Saturday night inside Madison Square Garden will see him fight for just the second since before the COVID-19 pandemic caused a worldwide shutdown in March 2020. Following his quickfire submission victory over Ciryl Gane at UFC 285, ‘Bones’ will put his undisputed heavyweight title on the line against two-time titleholder Stipe Miocic — another fighter who’s been inactive for the last three-and-a-half years.

Jon Jones

While Jones vs. Miocic has been a fairly contentious fight for fans of the sport, and likely won’t amount to much in the grand scheme of things, it still presents and intriguing matchup between two of the greatest fighters of all time.

Offering his breakdown of the often-maligned main event via his YouTube channel, ‘The Last Stylebender’ started his assessment by looking back at Jones’ spectacular heavyweight debut 20 months ago.

“Jones lately looks better at heavyweight already,” Adesanya said. He has been taking this seriously, and again, the way he fights… like, bro, the Ciryl Gane fight was the one that made me go, ‘Yeah, nah, he’s the best.’ Cause I thought Ciryl Gane was gonna give him some trouble. Ciryl was like the new-age heavyweight, and Jones was like, ‘Hold my beer,’ and he just… sneakily, none of us knew—even DC was like, ‘What did he catch him with?’ It was like a sneaky front choke. The guy is just crafty, creative with what he does.”

Israel Adesanya predicts an early night for jon jones

Of course, you can never count out a tough-as-nails scrapper like Stipe Miocic. After all, the Cleveland native is the only man in UFC history to hold the heavyweight title on two separate occasions. He’s also the only one to defend it three consecutive times, defeating Alistair Overeem, Junior dos Santos, and Francis Ngannou in the process.

“But with Stipe… Stipe is tough,” Adesanya said. “He can outwork a lot of heavyweights. You’ve seen what he’s done in the past, you’ve seen his reign as a heavyweight. He’s knocked people out, submitted people. But in this fight, man, I think he’s up against it.”

Jon Jones

But even after glazing Miocic, the ‘Stylebender’ is riding with ‘Bones’ to get the job done inside the world’s most famous arena.

“I’m gonna pick Jon Jones,” Adesanya added. “I’m gonna pick it by maybe the second or first—yeah, first two rounds, he’s gonna finish him. But again, this is fighting—sh*t happens. It could just be a zig-zag, boom. If Stipe gets it done, it will be the biggest upset in UFC history. If he gets it done… and that should be motivation enough for him to wanna get it done, yeah.

“I’m gonna go Jon Jones within the first two rounds. I don’t know if it’s gonna be a knockout or a submission, but I feel like Jon might try and enjoy this and soak this up.”

Jon Jones

Is Size Really Everything? Laura Sanko Thinks Length Might Be the Real Key

Is Size Really Everything? Laura Sanko Thinks Length Might Be the Real KeyLaura Sanko doesn’t see Jon Jones’ size making that much of a difference against Stipe Miocic. Length on the…

Is Size Really Everything? Laura Sanko Thinks Length Might Be the Real Key

Laura Sanko doesn’t see Jon Jones’ size making that much of a difference against Stipe Miocic. Length on the other hand is a different story.

On November 16, ‘Bones’ will put his undisputed heavyweight world title on the line for the first time when he headlines the UFC’s return to Madison Square Garden. Standing in Jones’ way of adding another successful defense to his resume will be Miocic, the promotion’s first and only two-time heavyweight titleholder.

Laura Sanko

It will be Jones’ second time competing as a heavyweight, the first coming at UFC 285 in March 2023 when he scored a quickfire submission victory over Ciryl Gane to claim the vacated crown. ‘Bones’ weighed 248-pounds for that bout. If he tips the scales similarly for Saturday’s scrap in NYC, he’ll likely have a slight size advantage over Miocic who usually weighs in at 230-240.

However, Jones’ real advantage will be with his length. At least, that’s what color commentary Laura Sanko thinks.

“Yeah, I always tell people, size isn’t as big of an advantage as you think it is… but length is,” Sanko told Din Thomas while the two broke down the UFC 309 headliner.

Jones’ reach measures at 84.5 inches which is the second-longest in the UFC.

Din Thomas Agrees with Laura Sanko’s assessment of Size vs. Length

Din Thomas agreed with Sanko’s statement, suggesting that if Miocic has any chance of winning, it’ll be by making the most of his 80-inch reach via distance management and keeping ‘Bones’ at bay with combinations.

“It’s a huge advantage,” Thomas added. “And this is why I’m saying Stipe is gonna have to do his job on his feet because he can cover up some of that distance in and out, side to side, creating angles, seeing if he can catch Jon slipping. I mean, he’s gonna have to. And he’s gonna have to throw in combinations. But I think he’s got a skill set that ages well, as long as he’s been active and moving his body.”

Laura Sanko

Sanko also pointed out that Jon Jones has fought someone similarly statured on two separate occasions, given us a potential indicator of how ‘Bones’ could handle his matchup against Miocic.

“I agree,” Sanko said. “And part of that is because this is the fight where the length that you’re talking about is the least pronounced. Stipe is taller and longer than Alexander Gustafsson, and that’s the closest one to it. Alex Gustafsson is 6’5,” Stipe 6’6.”

Laura Sanko

UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic Press Conference Live Stream

We’re deep into UFC 309 fight week, meaning it’s time for the fighters set to be in action on November 16 to take to the stage and answer some questions. The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the main attraction will see UFC Heavyweight Champion […]

Continue Reading UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic Press Conference Live Stream at MMA News.

We’re deep into UFC 309 fight week, meaning it’s time for the fighters set to be in action on November 16 to take to the stage and answer some questions.

The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the main attraction will see UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones put his belt on the line against Stipe Miocic.

Setting the stage for the UFC 309 headliners will be a crucial five-round contest at 155 pounds, with former kingpin Charles Oliveira looking to repeat his 2021 victory over Michael Chandler in their highly anticipated rematch.

Also on pay-per-view will be rising middleweight prospect Bo Nickal, who gets his toughest test to date in formerly ranked submission specialist Paul Craig. That’s in addition to surging flyweight Karine Silva, who looks to keep climbing the ladder toward Valentina Shevchenko’s gold at the expense of her fellow countrywoman Viviane Araujo.

The UFC 309 main card will open with the always entertaining Mauricio Ruffy making his second walk to the Octagon. The Fighting Nerds standout will look to continue his winning start to life in the UFC against late-notice replacement James Llontop.

As is customary during major fight weeks, the athletes will take to the stage on Thursday for the pre-fight press conference.

Check out a live stream of the presser below via the UFC’s official YouTube channel, commencing at 5 PM ET.

Continue Reading UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic Press Conference Live Stream at MMA News.

UFC 309: Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic Press Conference Highlights & Faceoffs

We’re deep into UFC 309 fight week, meaning it was recently time for the fighters set to be in action on November 16 to take to the stage and answer some questions. The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the main attraction will see UFC […]

We’re deep into UFC 309 fight week, meaning it was recently time for the fighters set to be in action on November 16 to take to the stage and answer some questions.

The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the main attraction will see UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones put his belt on the line against Stipe Miocic.

Setting the stage for the UFC 309 headliners will be a crucial five-round contest at 155 pounds, with former kingpin Charles Oliveira looking to repeat his 2021 victory over Michael Chandler in their highly anticipated rematch.

Also on pay-per-view will be rising middleweight prospect Bo Nickal, who gets his toughest test to date in formerly ranked submission specialist Paul Craig. That’s in addition to surging flyweight Karine Silva, who looks to keep climbing the ladder toward Valentina Shevchenko’s gold at the expense of her fellow countrywoman Viviane Araujo.

The UFC 309 main card will open with the always entertaining Mauricio Ruffy making his second walk to the Octagon. The Fighting Nerds standout will look to continue his winning start to life in the UFC against late-notice replacement James Llontop.

As is customary during major fight weeks, the athletes took to the stage on Thursday for the pre-fight press conference.

Check out a replay of the presser below via the UFC’s official YouTube channel, followed by all the highlights and faceoffs.

UFC 309 Press Conference Highlights

UFC 309 Press Conference Faceoffs