The UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones just revealed the timeline for his retirement! At UFC 285, Jones submitted Ciryl Gane to win the heavyweight strap and become a two-division title holder. After the bout, Jon shot down a potential bout against ex-UFC champ Francis Ngannou. However, he did have his eyes set on one particular fight and it was against Stipe Miocic.
After his KO loss to Ngannou at UFC 260, Stipe stayed away from the Octagon and focused on his fire-fighting job. However, in recent times, Mioicic has stepped up his training and it looks like he is preparing for a shot at regaining his title. After winning his trilogy against Daniel Cormier, Stipe was dubbed the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time. Hence, Jones wants to “dominate” Stipe and walk away from the sport for good.
How cool would it be to spend my retirement fight dominating the greatest heavyweight of all time, in my home state at Madison Square Garden?
— BONY (@JonnyBones) April 16, 2023
In a recent tweet, Jones speculated that he would ride off into the sunset after facing and potentially beating the Ohio native in his first title defense. And, Jones wants the fight to be in the iconic Madison Square Garden Arena (MSG). He wrote, “How cool would it be to spend my retirement fight dominating the greatest heavyweight of all time, in my home state at Madison Square Garden?”
When will Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic take place?
Jonny Bones just made his return to the UFC after 3 years at UFC 285. Fans were worried if Jon could cope with the physicality of competing in the heavyweight division. However, he put all those speculations to bed and showed the world why he is often regarded as the greatest Mixed Martial Artist (MMA) of all time! He towered over Gane and pushed around the French fighter as if he was a middleweight.
The sweetest sound you’ll hear all weekend 🔊 #UFC285 pic.twitter.com/n2MOjU1b4Y
— UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023
Although it was a spectacular performance, some critics pointed out Gane did not have enough grappling experience to be able to give Jon a competitive fight. Hence, many focused their attention on the potential bout against Stipe Miocic. Not only does Stipe have great striking acumen, but Miocic is also a great wrestler defensively and can cause problems for Jon with his takedown defense.
So the question is, when can the fans expect to see the fight happen? After UFC 285, there was a sense that Jon did not want to wait too long for his first heavyweight title defense. According to a report, Jon vs Stipe was in the works for UFC 290. The card is set to take place on July 8, inside the T-Mobile Arena. Jones’ last fight card in Vegas did the highest gate for any heavyweight fight in UFC history.
So matching Jones with Miocic for the heavyweight title in July seemed like the perfect choice. However, in recent times, Jones has accused Stipe of looking for a way out of the fight. Although Stipe denied it, it does not look like the bout is set to happen at UFC 290 after all. According to a recent report by ESPN journalist Marc Raimondi, the promotion is looking to book the bout for fall this year.
I’ve seen several tweets talking about Jones vs. Miocic at UFC 290 in July. That’s still the fight all parties want next, but it won’t happen in July and hasn’t really been discussed for July in a while. Much more likely now for the fall.
— Marc Raimondi (@marcraimondi) April 12, 2023
Are you excited about the potential bout between Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic? If you are, who do you think wins the fight? Let us know in the comments down below.