On the same weekend when Mike Tyson will step back into the ring for his first pro fight in more than twenty years to fight Jake Paul at Cowboys Stadium on Friday, the UFC will host a long-awaited heavyweight title bout at the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. Somehow, the hype around the clash that will see Jon Jones defend his belt against former champion, Stipe Miocic is considerably lower than many expected when the prospect of “Bones” Jones moving up to the heavyweight division was originally discussed several years ago.
There are a few different reasons for it, but the fact that Tyson/Paul is the same weekend isn’t one of them. Keep in mind, the boxing event is included in a Netflix subscription so fans won’t have to choose between that or the UFC event with the hefty $79.99 price tag, which also requires a subscription to the ESPN+ streaming service. Sure, Netflix will make a majority portion of its cash on advertisements and sponsorships for the broadcast, but the bottom line is, fans won’t have to choose between paying a premium price to watch the boxing match, which would theoretically leave some cash in their wallets to order the UFC heavyweight showdown.
Still, I’m not sure if sports fans will be clamoring to pay $80 for the Jones/Miocic event, especially with the current level of inflation and general economic uncertainly after the Presidential election. Just going to the grocery store can be a five-round war in itself so some viewers might be more hesitant to use disposable income that they would’ve spent on a pay-per-view in the past.
One of the main reasons for it is simple, out of sight, out of mind.
Some pundits have called “Bones” Jones the greatest fighter of all time, but I honestly see that as more of promotional hyperbole than anything else. Don’t get me wrong, the 37-year-old champion had the skill and the potential to be in the conversation as one of the best to ever step into the cage, but his track record of terrible decisions outside of the octagon ultimately affected his position within the sport. Several arrests, failed drug tests, domestic violence incidents, and PED scandals kept “Bones” Jones on the sidelines more often than not during the prime years of his career. He simply wasn’t eligible to fight some of the top competition within the 205 LBS division at different times so it’s not known if he would’ve maintained his nearly unblemished record or not.
The bout with Stipe was delayed more than a year, as Jones was scheduled to fight him last November before a pectoral tendon tear sent the former Light Heavyweight champion into surgery rather than the octagon. That’s partially the reason for a lack of sizzle around this pay-per-view, neither of the fighters, while accomplished, have fought regularly within the past few years. In fact, the only reason that Jones was granted a title shot was because Francis Ngannou was stripped of the title due to contract disagreements with the UFC, opting to pursue boxing and ink a deal with the PFL instead. Francis knocked out Stipe in the second round of a bout in March of 2021 to claim the title before his exit from the UFC. Ciryl Gane, who also lost a fight to Ngannou in January of 2022, was chosen to fight Jones to determine a new heavyweight champion last March. Clearly, UFC management wanted to pad the resume of Jones, who was being given a title shot despite the fact that he never fought in the division before.
It speaks volumes to the lack of depth in the heavyweight division when someone that hasn’t fought in the weight class is immediately granted a title shot. However, Jones hasn’t fought in over a year and a half, more or less putting a pause on the entire heavyweight division, as the ranking of contenders is irrelevant when the champion isn’t set to defend the belt. It was very similar to when the UFC promotional machine got behind Conor McGregor, shoehorning him into a scenario where he could be promoted as a double champion, and then he took that promotional hype to fight Floyd Mayweather for a hefty amount of cash in boxing. The Irishman didn’t fight for a few years and in the process, it completely hindered the featherweight and lightweight divisions respectively. Yes, Jones was on the injured list this past year, but given his track record, he probably wouldn’t have defended the heavyweight title more once anyway, considering that before he beat Gane, he didn’t fight for three years, vacating the Light Heavyweight championship after he defeated Dominick Reyes for a close decision on the score cards.
Stipe Miocic hasn’t fought recently either, as his last bout was when he was knocked out by the previously mentioned Ngannou more than three and a half years ago. There’s just not a lot of momentum to use to sell the fight as an important bout because Jones isn’t known for a regular schedule, and even before the title shot was offered to Miocic last year, he hadn’t competed in the two years prior to that so there was some speculation that he might retire. In short, the UFC can’t properly promote a division when the competitors have been MIA for the past few years. As mentioned, Stipe hasn’t fought in more than three and a half years, and Jones had one fight in the past four and a half years.
As for the fight itself, I think there are a few keys to victory to determine who might have the advantage, as well as who might secure the victory. Make no mistake about it, Stipe has dangerous power and he could undoubtedly catch Jones with a punch to end the fight. But, the biggest question is, at least for Stipe is, will the former champion have any ring rust from being away from competition for the past few years? As much as he wasted a lot of talent and some of the prime years of his career, it goes without saying that “Bones” Jones is an incredible athlete. I’m not sure if sparring or training sessions, especially after a long absence from the cage, can truly prepare Miocic for the level of competition he will encounter against Jones, particularly for a five-round fight.
The other side of the coin is, how will Jon Jones return from the pectoral tendon tear? Will he be in peak physical condition? Furthermore, will he be focused on the fight? As I said, the biggest hurdles throughout his career were his terrible decisions outside of the sport. He won a split decision against Thiago Santos and then the decision win against Reyes before he took the three-year hiatus from the octagon, and in both contests, he didn’t look completely focused on the fight.
At 42, Stipe is at the latter stage of his career, but the notion of power being the last skill to diminish might be true and that makes him a dangerous opponent. However, Jones has the youth advantage, and I think that might play the biggest role as the fight gets into the championship rounds. As much as I’m disappointed with the talent and opportunities that Jones wasted throughout most of his career, I have to pick him to retain the championship, mostly because I don’t think Stipe can defeat someone the caliber of Jones after such an extended absence from the sport.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
