Stipes biggest problem would be that he's a notoriously slow starter.
Do you realize Stipe has 6 first round finishes in the UFC?
Clearly you don’t.
Where did you get this fantasy idea that Stipe is an “notoriously slow starter”? Certainly not from actually watching his fights.
There’s no need to make shit up. The facts speak for themselves. Stipe even had a 4 fight winning streak of first round wins. Arlovski, Werdum, Overeem, and JDS. And the last 3 were all title fights.
Stipe - Old, hasn't fought in ages. In the last 6 years he is 2-2, with the losses being K.O's. Weighs about 15 lbs less than Jon. Stipe has not fought in 3 years.Should be Stipe but man, I really don't think he will be anywhere close to the same as he was in his prime. The DC trilogy took a lot out of him and that Francis KO likely ended his chin/durability for good. On the other hand there is Alex, who might not be as complete of a fighter as Stipe but he is also far less damaged and has been active, unlike Stipe who has been out for years.
If you had to pick one with the best chance of beating Jones, who would it be?
Stipe is only 41/42 in August.
42 is just out of prime for HW.
He may have been knocked out in 2021, but that's largely irrelevant anymore. Any short term damage is fully recovered.
I'd be more worried about ring rust than the effects of the 2021 knockout.
The good news for Stipe is that Jon isn't a KO artist.Call me crazy, but I think that even a shopworn Stipe is a bad match up for Jones and could be a cherrypick gone wrong.
Jones has historically struggled striking with guys who have similar heights and reaches, and Stipe is good boxer and a solid wrestler.
Since the fight was announced, I've thought that it might turn out being much more difficult for Jones than people expect.
Jones is now deep into his 30s, has been very inactive over the past several years, is coming of the first serious injury of his career and looks like shit physically after doing a bunch of partying. All of those factors are going to balance things out for Stipe.