Well.... Jon Jones is fighting Stipe in New York in November. Prob gonna be UFC 308.
This has been previously hinted at by Stipe but Dana White effectively confirmed it during the St.Louis post-fight presser.
Watching Dana's reaction to certain questions and paying careful attention to his mannerisms & expressions and stuff gives good clues as to future happenings....
Here it is Timestamped :
I don't think we would even want to see Jones in another fight unless it truly motivates him / gets the juices flowing.Tom Aspinall has shown the skills to potentially be the Stipe Miocic of this generation of heavyweight. But Jones has been sitting on the title for over a year and refuses to fight him. Imagine if Werdum had ducked Stipe for two years and then retired without ever facing him. Stipe would not have set the title defense record and not be considered UFC GOAT heavyweight. He would just be another guy who got the belt one time. Jones is screwing over every active heavyweight in the top 5 from having a legacy of their own.
I don't think we would even want to see Jones in another fight unless it truly motivates him / gets the juices flowing.
It would be another OSP, Reyes, Smith, Santos, Gus 1
Hes had a few stinker performances, relative to his potential and level of talent and it's because he fought all comers.
Compare that to how he showed up against DC.
When you're at that age, motivation Is a huge factor.
Even mighty mouse wont fight again unless its something that gets his blood pumping.
If it's his last fight, as the consensus goat, I think he's entitled to take a fight that actually gets him up in the morning running. Otherwise, there probably isn't a point.
And this is a common theme with many fighters at that stage.
Someone you can sell a fight with, create a big event with, someone with some accolades behind them.
Once you start getting up there in age and only have a few left, you see fighters being very specific about who they want fight. Same has always been true in boxing as well. Probably other sports too if you dig deeper.
People might hate, but ultimately, it will end up being a lot better for the fans, all said and done if Jon takes a fight he's actually motivated to take.
Not one where he takes a massive pay cut to fight a guy with no personality, accolades or anything to really gain from.
All this in mind, you could understand wanting the champ vs champ fight against Poatan.
Sucks for Tom, but that's the game. If he had some genuine, ngannou level hype behind him.
It would all play out very differently.
If this was just a sport with a linear hierarchy of rankings, deservedness and opponents, then I might agree.If he doesn't want to face the best fighter in the world then give up the title. As it stands he's holding up the division.
Except everyone knew that Francis was leaving after the Gane fight. He told anyone who would listen that he was leaving unless the UFC let him box, and Dana was clear that it would never happen. He took the Gane fight with a torn knee for the explicit purpose of getting out of his contract (it was the last fight on an 8-fight deal).
By the time Jones "came to terms," everyone who was paying attention (including Jones) knew Francis was out. To suggest otherwise is revisionist history.
Nobody knew he was leaving outside of Ngannou. The UFC offered Ngannou $8 million to fight Jon Jones, plus pay-per-view points that would have likely brought his total take to roughly $10 million. One of the key problems from Ngannou's side is what he would have made in the UFC deal had he lost to Jones. Ngannou wanted a 3 fight deal with Stipe and Jones twice.
The problem was with Ngannou
Ngannou is to blame as he priced himself out of what he was asking for with that 3 fight deal and then boxing. He asked for a right to sponsorship, He asked for health insurance. He asked for somebody in the board meetings, a fighter advocate.
Nobody was going to get that shit. Ngannou mentioned that he was going to do all those fights in a year before his move to boxing, So its funny how so many fight fans cry about something they actually do not even know about,
If he doesn't want to face the best fighter in the world then give up the title. As it stands he's holding up the division.
This is another Bisping/Romero situation where a number one contender is getting screwed because the champ wants easier fights.
I don't blame Francis for what he did and for himself he did the right thing. But people are turning around and calling Jones a duck for a decision outside of his control. And theres something igregiously unfair about that.
Jones was already signed and linked to the march card long before Ngannou finally left.Nobody knew he was leaving outside of Ngannou. The UFC offered Ngannou $8 million to fight Jon Jones, plus pay-per-view points that would have likely brought his total take to roughly $10 million. One of the key problems from Ngannou's side is what he would have made in the UFC deal had he lost to Jones. Ngannou wanted a 3 fight deal with Stipe and Jones twice.
The problem was with Ngannou
Ngannou is to blame as he priced himself out of what he was asking for with that 3 fight deal and then boxing. He asked for a right to sponsorship, He asked for health insurance. He asked for somebody in the board meetings, a fighter advocate.
Nobody was going to get that shit. He mentioned to do all those fights in a year before his move to boxing, So its funny how so many fight fans cry about something they actually do not even know about,
Ironically, Francis made a mirror decision to what Jones is doing now.I agree with you and I also respect Francis decision to make more money and I applaud him. The contention is with these idiots who do not really know what transpired, including goofy moderators.
Jones was already signed and linked to the march card long before Ngannou finally left.
Francis was offered the fight in contract form, declined and decided to box. Stated by Ngannou and his own team.
Chael who hates Jon more than anyone said he agreed to 3 fights( Ngannou, Gane, Pavlovich) and deserves some credit.
People just like to rewrite history when it comes to fighters they don't like.
Nobody knew he was leaving outside of Ngannou. The UFC offered Ngannou $8 million to fight Jon Jones, plus pay-per-view points that would have likely brought his total take to roughly $10 million. One of the key problems from Ngannou's side is what he would have made in the UFC deal had he lost to Jones. Ngannou wanted a 3 fight deal with Stipe and Jones twice.
The problem was with Ngannou
Ngannou is to blame as he priced himself out of what he was asking for with that 3 fight deal and then boxing. He asked for a right to sponsorship, He asked for health insurance. He asked for somebody in the board meetings, a fighter advocate.
Nobody was going to get that shit. Ngannou mentioned that he was going to do all those fights in a year before his move to boxing, So its funny how so many fight fans cry about something they actually do not even know about,
Ngannou made his intent clear. He was always going to wait for free agency. The UFC did not need to release him. They could have matched PFL's offer and retained. It's in the contract that they have a right to match. Just like they could have kept Cyborg. Except Dana threw a tantrum and just outright released both of them to put them in a weaker position.
Jones spent over 2 years ducking that fight. If you're going to argue Ngannou priced himself out then let's talk about Jones pricing himself out for all that time by demanding Deontay Wilder money. Then magically AFTER Ngannou fulfills the last fight of his contract Jones somehow comes to terms. He could have done that 2 years earlier and the fight would have happened.
It's just funny how quickly the narrative switches among UFC shills now that Ngannou is no longer with the company. Back then it was obvious Jones was ducking and even Dana was calling him out on it.
Ngannou made his intent clear. He was always going to wait for free agency. The UFC did not need to release him. They could have matched PFL's offer and retained. It's in the contract that they have a right to match. Just like they could have kept Cyborg. Except Dana threw a tantrum and just outright released both of them to put them in a weaker position out of spite.
Jones spent over 2 years ducking that fight. If you're going to argue Ngannou priced himself out then let's talk about Jones pricing himself out for all that time by demanding Deontay Wilder money. Then magically AFTER Ngannou fulfills the last fight of his contract Jones somehow comes to terms. He could have done that 2 years earlier and the fight would have happened.
It's just funny how quickly the narrative switches among UFC shills now that Ngannou is no longer with the company. Back then it was obvious Jones was ducking and even Dana was calling him out on it.
Hendo and Stipe deserved free title shots to retire if we're being completley honest with ourselves.
That's what people thought about Cain, then injuries ended his career. 2 years is a long time in fight years. If Jones fights Stipe in November that's 20 months that the title has not been defended. Stipe is supposed to be the greatest UFC heavyweight because he defended 3 times right? Take 20 months out of his title reign and he'd only have a single defense.Also 2017 MW was different because it was full of old people at the end of their careers and they had very little time left to fight at a high level. And said was being squandered. This is not that its actually the opposite of that with trying to get one last fight out of Stipe which people very meanly don't care about. Aspullnall will be fighting long after Jones or Stipe is gone.