What mattered most at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York? Here are a few post-fight musings …
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5. Jim Miller remains timeless
Jim Miller showed his UFC 300 loss to Bobby Green was merely another bump in the road of his storied octagon journey when he bounced back to finish Damon Jackson with a guillotine choke in the first round, adding to his legendary resume under the UFC banner.
Miller (38-17 MMA, 27-16 UFC) built on his all-time promotional wins total and extended a number of other records courtesy of the slick choke vs. Jackson, who seemingly retired after the fight. It’s just another fighter who has come and gone while Miller has remained in the UFC for more than 15 years of service.
After speaking for so many years about his desire to fight at UFC 300 after competing at UFC 200 and UFC 100, some thought maybe this would be his swan song. But nope. Miller mentioned the idea of pushing toward becoming the first to reach 50 UFC fights, and potential 30 UFC wins before his calls it a day. He said he’s still got “tread on the tires” to make it happen, and it’s hard to dismiss that possibility if he really wants it.
4. Bo Nickal loses some of his lustre
By the time Bo Nickal’s fight with Paul Craig was winding down, the crowd was loudly chanting “overrated” at the undefeated middleweight prospect, who went past the second round for the first time in his career and left with a unanimous decision.
It’s understandable what Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) was doing. He didn’t want to take the risk of mingling with submission ace Craig on the ground and got 15 minutes to work his striking – but it wasn’t exactly spectacular. Nickal’s standup game consisted of a lot of winging overhands and switching of stances, and it wasn’t particularly enjoyable to watch.
Nevertheless, Nickal got the victory, and perhaps this will be a good thing for him in the long run. It’s a learning experience for Nickal and brought some of the hype around him back down to Earth. It might not stay that way for long, though, because if he comes back in the next one and gets a highlight finish, all will be forgotten.
3. Michael Chandler might just fail upwards
Charles Oliveira is an MMA legend and icon and is likely teed up for a lightweight title shot after his co-main event win. That seems clear and not much more needs to be said other than the Brazilian is an all-time UFC fighter.
So instead of focusing on Oliveira, let’s put some attention on Michael Chandler, who lost the rematch with “Do Bronx” by unanimous decision in his return from a well-documented two-year layoff as he chased a fight with Conor McGregor.
Chandler has been nothing but kind and generous to me throughout his career all the way back to his early Bellator days, so it gives me no joy to write this, but the result of this bout and the way it unfolded felt like a pretty clear nail in the coffin for his UFC title aspirations.
That doesn’t mean his value the company is diminished by any stretch, however, and now that the title talk is out the window, Chandler can focus on other matchups, for which there are plenty for him.
The McGregor fight, especially, doesn’t seem totally out of reach. The loss might actually encourage McGregor to grow more confident in his chances to return and beat Chandler, and although his comeback is now seemingly being pushed off until late 2025 (if ever), Chandler still very much feels like a potential option in play.
This was a tough loss for Chandler to swallow as a competitor, but things aren’t quite as grim as they may seem.
2. Happy trails to Stipe Miocic
It’s kind of sad that when the main event came to a conclusion and Jon Jones had his hand raised by third-round TKO to defend the heavyweight title, the in-cage retirement of Stipe Miocic felt like a pretty significant afterthought.
Miocic (20-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) had essentially nothing to offer Jones during their time in the octagon prior to the finish, and in all honesty, he looked every bit of a 42-year-old fighter who hadn’t competed in more than three years.
Some will say Miocic just came back to collect a paycheck to face Jones on a massive card, but I don’t buy that. I think he came in with a genuine belief he could win, but the guy we saw become the most successful heavyweight champion in UFC history is just not there any more. There’s no shame in that. It’s the natural order of things, and thankfully Miocic was self-aware enough to know he should call it a career.
It’s a bit of a bummer he couldn’t be celebrated more on the night for his accomplishments, but I expect that time to truly come eventually. Miocic is a guaranteed UFC Hall of Famer, and whenever the promotion decides to honor him an induction, will hopefully be the time he can get his proper recognition for everything he accomplished.
1. UFC can’t fumble Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall
UFC CEO Dana White will openly admit to two major failures in his career: One is not reaching a deal to sign Fedor Emelianenko, and the other is not making Jones vs. Francis Ngannou.
There appears to be a significant risk of another fight joining that list if Jones vs. Tom Aspinall for the unified heavyweight championship does not get done.
White expressed confidence he would be able to come to terms with Jones to fight Aspinall, despite “Bones” repeatedly stating he has no desire to do that matchup and would rather face Alex Pereira in a potential retirement bout. However, that was before Jones said he wanted “f*ck you money.”
What does that number actually look like? It’s hard to know for sure. Jones said he’s learned not to put figures out to the public after his past experiences in UFC negotiations, but it’s hard to forget the alleged $30 million price tag he requested to do the Ngannou fight several years ago.
That obviously never happened, and as much as some people at UFC will try to paint the narrative it was Ngannou who bailed on the fight – anyone who followed the timeline closely knows that Jones had plenty of culpability in that situation, as well.
But that’s the past, and this is the future. There’s a chance for Jones and the UFC to redeem itself here. If Jones vs. Aspinall is truly the biggest heavyweight fight in company history “by a long shot,” as White claimed post-fight, then no expense should be spared.
It’s understandable why, at this stage of his career, Jones wants the risk to be worth the reward. He might not be verbalizing it in a way that’s appealing to everyone, but I’m not going to rake Jones over the coals for standing up for himself and what he believes is best in the twilight of his fighting days. Moreover, we know the UFC can afford essentially whatever cost Jones demands, and the promotional upside if Aspinall wins would be worth the investment.
It’s going to be a fascinating game to see unfold in the coming weeks and months. The UFC has missed the boat on some defining heavyweight fights in the past, and it would be a damning moment if this one escapes us, too.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 309 takeaways: Will Jon Jones get his ‘f*ck you money’ to face Tom Aspinall?
