UFC 309: Jon Jones defeats Stipe Miocic by knockout to defend UFC heavyweight championship title
Published 17/11/2024 at 07:42 GMT
Jon Jones defended his undisputed UFC heavyweight title with a victory over Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The 37-year-old claimed a record 16th title fight triumph with a devastating spinning kick in the third round. Jones cemented himself as one of the finest mixed martial artists of all time with the victory over 42-year-old Miocic.
'And still!' - Jones retains UFC heavyweight title against Miocic at UFC 309
Video credit: TNT Sports
Jon Jones beat Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 to retain the undisputed UFC heavyweight championship at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The 37-year-old claimed a record 16th title fight victory by knockout in the third round of the blockbuster bout, stopping his 42-year-old counterpart with a spinning kick.
Jones now holds a UFC record of 27-1-0 as he cemented himself as one of the finest mixed martial artists of all time.
Miocic started the fight positively and connected with a couple of shots before Jones brought him down to the mat halfway through the opener and delivered some damaging elbow blows.
Jones connected strongly with Miocic’s head and the last big elbow cut open the challenger's right cheek.
In the second round, which was slow for the most part, both fighters remained on their feet as Miocic took some kicks and knees from Jones, before landing some single shots of his own.
There were calls from Miocic’s corner to follow through with his attacks, but the 42-year-old held back, and the pair headed for the decisive third round.
Former two-time champion Miocic continued the momentum with a strong uppercut early in the round, but Jones - who surprisingly hadn't attempted a takedown since the opener - had control of the fight from distance.Â
He caught Miocic with a painful right cross which left his opponent wincing, but Miocic fought back and clipped Jones with another uppercut when he came close.
But Jones retreated to keep his distance where he was getting the most joy and dominated Miocic with kicks and straight shots before landing the devastating blow, a spinning kick to the ribs.
Miocic hit the deck and Jones dived in to finish him off, but the referee stepped in to declare the end of the fight, which meant Jones was champion again.
Afterwards, Jones described facing Miocic - who he was due to lock horns with last year before injury stuck - like “fighting against the Terminator”.
“He's really, really good. He's really tough, he's really durable,” Jones told TNT Sports. “I was hitting him with some decent shots and he kept coming forward.
"Very, very discouraging to hit somebody that's not reacting to it. But that body shot, no matter how tough you are, the liver's the liver.
"Everyone knows that Stipe Miocic isn't the biggest heavyweight but he always comes lean.Â
“He always comes in great shape cardio shape. I watched him have wars with Daniel Cormier and a lot of guys where they just rock 'n' sock em.Â
“He doesn't react much to getting punched in the face. So our plan was to try and attack the body a little bit more. I was hoping to get him out in the first round but he hung in there."
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