Aurélie Sacchelli, Media365, published on Sunday November 17, 2024 at 9:24 a.m.
In a highly anticipated fight at New York's Madison Square Garden at UFC 309, Jon Jones knocked out Stipe Miocic with a kick to the ribs to retain his heavyweight belt.
The day after the highly anticipated (and ultimately disappointing) boxing fight between the Americans Mike Tyson and Jake Paul in Texas, another heavyweight clash shook the world of combat sports on Saturday: that between the Americans Joe Jones and Stipe Miocic in MMA, as part of UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York. And the suspense was no more there than the day before. Under the eyes of Donald Trump, present in the front row, Jones (37 years old) knocked out Miocic (42 years old) by inflicting a spinning kick on him in the ribs during the third round, and also celebrated his victory by performing the now famous dance of the 47th American president. Dominant from start to finish, the native of New York State had already opened his opponent's right cheekbone in the first round, then multiplied his kicks again in the second, before finishing the job in the third. “Stipe is really, really good. It is resistant, durable. I hit him with a few decent shots, and he kept coming,” Jones admitted after the fight. Everyone knows Stipe isn't the biggest heavyweight. He's skinny and in great shape. I saw him fight with Daniel Cormier and many others. He doesn't react much to being hit in the face, so our plan was to hit him in the body.”
What now, Aspinall?
Crowned light heavyweight world champion at the age of 23 (a record in UFC history), Joe Jones won the vacant heavyweight belt in March 2023 to the detriment of Frenchman Ciryl Gane. He should have faced Miocic a year ago, but a pectoral injury prevented him from doing so. Here he is now at the head of a record of 28 victories for a single defeat in the UFC, while Miocic (20 wins, 5 losses), who had not fought since March 2021 and a defeat against Francis Ngannou, announced Saturday evening after the fight that he was retiring from the Octagon. Now MMA fans are waiting for a fight between Joe Jones and 31-year-old Englishman Tom Aspinall, who has held the interim heavyweight belt since November 2023 (when the first Jones/Miocic fight was scheduled). After his victory, Joe Jones, who until then had not shown much interest in facing Aspinall, whom he described as a “nobody”, did not close the door to this possibility at all. Negotiations will begin.
