This past Saturday night in the main event of UFC 285, the heavyweight title was on the line. Jon Jones (27-1, 1 NC) was making his highly anticipated heavyweight debut for all the marbles as he took on former interim champion and top contender Ciryl Gane (11-2).
The intrigue from this matchup came if the fight stayed on the feet. Everyone knew that Jon Jones would have the massive advantage in grappling, but if the two men stayed on the feet, Ciryl Gane posed a number of problems for Jon Jones.
The problem for Gane is that he couldn’t keep the fight standing. As soon as Jones grabbed ahold of him, he took him down to the ground. When they were on the ground against the fence, Jones was able to lock in a guillotine choke and forced Gane to tap.
In just about two minutes, Jon Jones erased all doubts about him and became the heavyweight champion of the world. One man who was watching from cage side is Jones’ next opponent, former UFC champion Stipe Miocic (20-4).
UFC GOAT vs Heavyweight GOAT
Jones called out Miocic in his post-fight interview and Miocic proclaimed that he will take Jones out in an interview after the event concluded. The storyline is already there as this fight will pair the overall greatest of all time against the UFC’s most decorated heavyweight champion in history.
Jones took no damage in this fight so he’s primed for a quick turnaround. Earlier in the week, Miocic said that the UFC had floated the idea of him facing off against the winner at International Fight Week in July. It now appears that will happen.
The betting lines for the potential matchup have already opened and Jones is a big time favorite. Currently lines have him sitting around -360 while Stipe Miocic can be found around +280. Not surprising given the way Jones looked and the extended layoff for Miocic.
We haven’t seen Miocic in the UFC since he lost the title to Francis Ngannou nearly two years ago. Win or lose, this will likely be Miocic’s last fight. Time will only tell what Jon Jones’ future holds, but this is a fight that will be a can’t miss for fight fans.