Jon Jones vs Stipe Miocic – UFC 309: MMA heavyweight championship fight

Jones sends Miocic into status with a brutal backmost footwear to the ribs connected UFC 309 combat nighttime successful New York.

Jon Jones has cemented his presumption arsenic arguably the top mixed martial arts (MMA) combatant of each clip by pulling disconnected a stunning knockout of Stipe Miocic to clasp his heavyweight loop astatine the UFC 309 combat night.

The 37-year-old American looked afloat successful power passim the main lawsuit astatine Madison Square Garden connected Saturday, preventing his hostile from leveraging his boxing skills and finishing with a brutal bottommost to the assemblage that near Miocic connected the canvas clutching his ribs.

“That assemblage changeable man, nary substance however pugnacious you are, the liver’s the liver,” a jubilant Jones said successful the cage pursuing his victory.

In the aftermath, 42-year-old erstwhile champion Miocic said helium was retiring from the sport.

“I’m done,” Miocic said. “I’m hanging ’em up.”

Widely considered the champion combatant successful the world, Jones (28 wins, 1 loss, 1 nary contest) was the aggressor from the commencement and took Miocic down with a superbly timed travel and trapped him earlier raining down elbows arsenic helium dominated the remainder of the round.

Keen not to get taken down again, Miocic was hesitant arsenic helium tried to negociate the distance, but Jones was capable to measurement strikes to the assemblage from his southpaw stance to support Miocic connected the backmost foot.

Croatian-American Miocic enjoyed immoderate occurrence aboriginal successful the 3rd round, but erstwhile again Jones was capable to enactment retired the puzzle, connecting with a mates of punches precocious successful the circular earlier his originative rotating footwear ended the bout.

British heavyweight Tom Aspinall looms arsenic the adjacent challenger for Jones. Aspinall won a combat for the interim heavyweight rubric successful November 2023.

UFC CEO Dana White had promised Aspinall, who chatted with Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murray, would situation the victor of the main lawsuit successful a unification bout.

UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones (R) fights challenger Stipe Miocic [Kena Betancur/AFP]

Trump, Musk successful attendance

With Donald Trump successful the audience, Jones imitated the United States president-elect’s run way creation arsenic helium celebrated.

In the co-main event, Brazil’s Charles Oliveira defeated Michael Chandler by unanimous determination to enactment his sanction backmost successful contention for a ace astatine the lightweight rubric helium was stripped of for missing value successful May 2022.

Jones posed and played to the assemblage connected apical of the octagon successful beforehand of Trump, Elon Musk, picked by Trump to pb a caller Department of Government Efficiency, and Robert Kennedy Jr, Trump’s prime to pb the Department of Health and Human Services successful his incoming administration.

Trump walked retired to a rousing ovation successful beforehand of 20,200 fans conscionable earlier the commencement of the pay-per-view paper and seemed to bask successful the thrill of the fighters that passim the nighttime gave him props — including Jones.

“I privation to springiness a big, large convey you to President Donald Trump [for] being present tonight,” Jones said to a roaring ovation that bled into a “USA! USA!” chant.

“I’m arrogant to beryllium a large American champion,” Jones said.

US President-elect Donald Trump (L) and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk ticker the combat [Kena Betancur/AFP]

Charles Oliveira vs Michael Chandler

In a lightweight bout that made each fan, from Kid Rock to Jordan Knight to Anthony Kiedis, spell chaotic astatine the decorativeness successful the 5th round, Charles Oliveira bushed Michael Chandler via unanimous decision.

The combat was a rematch of their May 2021 combat erstwhile Charles Oliveira topped Chandler to triumph the lightweight title. Oliveira staked his assertion to different rubric combat with the win.

The 5th circular was astir arsenic bully arsenic it gets wrong the octagon highlighted by Chandler dropping Oliveira doubly connected his back.

The 38-year-old Chandler stepped wrong the cage for the archetypal clip successful 2 years, successful ample portion due to the fact that helium waited for a combat that ne'er materialised with Conor McGregor.

“We’ve been wondering wherever you’ve been, Conor,” Chandler bellowed successful the cage. “Come backmost and bushed maine if you can.”

Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler grapple connected the crushed successful a lightweight combat [Sarah Stier/Getty Images via AFP]