UFC President Dana White has revealed that Stipe Miocic has accepted a fight with former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones.
Miocic, who is a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, was last in action at UFC 260 in March. In a rematch against Francis Ngannou, the 38-year-old tasted defeat for the fourth time in his career. Having previously defended the title across five rounds against “The Predator” at UFC 220 in 2018, many predicted he’d be able to neutralize Ngannou’s immense power for the second time when they ran it back. Instead, Miocic was brutally knocked out in the second round.
Despite recently expressing his disdain at the UFC for not providing him with an immediate trilogy fight, something they gave Daniel Cormier when Miocic was champion, Dana White has claimed the Ohio native has accepted a potential clash with Jones..
While he’s appeared set on targeting a third matchup with the current champ, Miocic seemingly puts a clash with Jones, who is widely regarded as the greatest of all time, in the same bracket. That’s according to Dana White, who suggested Jones’ heavyweight debut could either come against the champion or against the #1-ranked man in the division.
“Me and Jones have had that type of relationship his whole career. When he’s ready to fight we are ready to go. He’s talking about fighting at heavyweight,” Dana White said on the Nelk Boys’ Full Send podcast. “But, in the heavyweight division right now we are going back to Houston, Derrick Lewis is taking on Ciryl Gane and whoever wins that fight will fight Francis Ngannou. Whoever wins that fight, if Jon Jones wants to come back he can fight one of them. Or, he can fight Stipe Miocic. Stipe has accepted that fight and will take that fight.” (h/t BJPenn.com)
Interestingly, White mentioned the possibility of Jones facing the winner of the champion vs. champion bout that will follow this weekend’s interim title clash. Given that the UFC kingpin had previously said Miocic would face the winner, and the former champ’s feelings about having to even wait for that fight to play out, it stands to reason he won’t be too happy to hear that he may have to wait for another three fights before his chance for redemption.
Having dominated the 205-pound division for a decade and effectively clearing out any opposition to his throne, Jones announced his decision to pursue a new challenge at heavyweight in 2020.
Aiming to cement his legacy as the best the sport has ever seen, “Bones” looked set to move up and challenge Ngannou in what would have been one of the biggest fights in the promotion’s history. But stalling negotiations and money discrepancies meant the fight fell through and Jones will remain on the sideline until at least 2022.
Judging by the training footage the Rochester-born star regularly uploads to his Instagram profile, Jones certainly looks someone to be reckoned with at the heavier weight.
Do you think Jon Jones should fight for the title or meet Stipe Miocic in the Octagon for his debut?
