Written by Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Jon Jones hasn’t been an underdog since his second fight in the UFC and that definitely won’t change when he sets foot in the octagon to battle Stipe Miocic on Saturday night.
Despite far less experience in the heavyweight division, Jones is currently a 7-to-1 favorite to beat Miocic and retain his title. Part of the reason for those lopsided odds might be Jones’ status as arguably the greatest fighter of all-time but there’s also questions surrounding Miocic even getting this matchup after nearly four years away from the sport and coming off a brutal knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in his previous outing in 2021.
While that’s all true, Jones’ longtime coach Brandon Gibson knows better than to think any fight is a guaranteed win just waiting to happen, especially with somebody like Miocic standing across the octagon from them.
“Sometimes the sport has a short memory unfortunately,” Gibson told MMA Fighting. “But especially as we film study for this fight, Stipe has been in dog fights. He’s been in one sided dominating performances. He can be the aggressor moving forward like we saw in the second Junior dos Santos fight. He can be punching off his back foot like we see in the [Fabricio] Werdum fight. He can be very strategic and stick to the game plan like we saw in the first Francis Ngannou fight.
“Stipe has it all. He can punch. He can kick. He can wrestle. He has great physical endurance. We know we’re going out there to fight the greatest UFC heavyweight champion of all time. We’re preparing for it as such.”
If there’s another reason why Miocic has been doubted so heavily leading into UFC 309, it’s at least partially thanks to the rise of interim UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.
The British born fighter has been absolutely dominant during his UFC career with eight wins all coming by way of knockout or submission with only a single opponent making it past the first round. His only loss came from a freak injury occurred in a fight against Curtis Blaydes and Aspinall avenged that defeat this past July with a stunning knockout just 60 seconds into their rematch.
As great as Aspinall has looked lately, Gibson refuses to look past the long list of accomplishments decorating Miocic’s resume.
He’s a two-time heavyweight champion with more title defenses in the division than anyone else in UFC history and Miocic has been competing at this level for the past 13 years.
“Stipe’s a dog,” Gibson said. “We’ve seen Stipe come back in fights. He’s proven himself in those championship rounds. He doesn’t fade. He’s as tough as they come. Even the knockout in the second Francis Ngannou fight, Stipe was wobbled and still punching. That man is dangerous at all times. He’s willing to go out on his shield.
“To me, that’s a much scarier matchup than maybe a young prospect who’s never made it out of the first round.”
As if all that wasn’t enough, Gibson also acknowledges rumors that Miocic may retire following the fight on Saturday and what better way to cap off a career than beating Jones in his final UFC appearance.
“[Stipe is] very dangerous,” Gibson said. “All of his championship experience, his accolades, where he’s at in his career, what he’s accomplished. He has nothing left to prove.
“So him taking this fight shows us he’s here to win. We’re taking it very seriously. We’ve been preparing so hard for this bout. We take it so seriously. You’re going to see the best Jon Jones because we have so much respect for Stipe.”
While he’s teased interest in potentially pursuing a matchup against UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in the future, Jones could also decide that beating Miocic is a great way to end his career as well. Gibson says that’s a huge part of the reason why Jones wanted this fight in the first place.
“This would be our 17th world championship victory, which that alone I don’t know if that will ever be matched,” Gibson said. “I don’t think people are going to look back and say how great Ciryl Gane was unfortunately. But there’s no doubt they’ll look back and say what a great heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic was, especially with win wins over Ngannou and [Daniel] Cormier.
“Jon’s never got to fight in New York City before. So Jon in Madison Square Garden, this has been a year and a half long buildup to this fight. I think there’s so many elements that are going to be checked, that just make it a very special night in Madison Square Garden. I can’t wait.”